Does Novu run my agent?

No. Novu Connect is the communication layer, the ACI, Agent Communication Infrastructure, bridge between your agent and Slack. You own the reasoning and the tools. We never run your brain, that is the whole point.

Can I switch model providers later?

Yes. Novu only carries the conversation to and from Slack. What happens inside your handler, including which model you call, is entirely up to you and can change at any time.

How do I connect my AI agent to Slack?

Run npx novu connect --channel slack, or paste the prompt above into your coding agent. Novu Connect handles the Slack app, user identity, and two-way message routing so your agent code does not change when you add the channel.

Can the agent hold a two-way conversation in Slack, not just post alerts?

Yes. Novu Connect maps each Slack user to your agent and routes their replies back into the same thread, so the conversation is genuinely two-way with retries on delivery.

Custom code + Slack

Connect your Custom code agent to Slack

No framework required. Connect the agent loop you already wrote to every channel your users are on. Novu Connect gives it a voice in Slack, with a real two-way conversation and reliable delivery. Build the agent once, reach users where they already work.

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Connect your Custom code agent to Slack with Novu Connect

What is Custom code

Custom code means the agent is fully yours: your own loop, your own model calls, your own tools, no framework in between. Novu does not care how your agent thinks. The bridge hands your handler each incoming message with its conversation context, and whatever your handler returns goes back to the user. That last mile, reaching a person in Slack and routing their reply back to your agent, is what Novu Connect adds.

Any model provider and any agent loop you already run
A plain handler: message in, reply out
Conversation context and user identity handled for you
No framework dependency to adopt

Custom code in Slack

Novu Connect is the communication layer, the ACI, Agent Communication Infrastructure, bridge between your custom agent and Slack. Your agent keeps running in your app. Novu delivers its messages to Slack, maps each user, and forwards their replies back to your handler. We never run your agent's reasoning. That is the whole point.

One agent, Slack, resolved in the thread

Novu Connect lets an existing AI agent talk to users in Slack with two-way threaded replies, user identity mapping, and reliable delivery. Connect it with the command npx novu connect --channel slack. A nightly sync fails. Helix's agent diagnoses the cause, asks for approval, runs the fix, and confirms, all in the thread.

How to connect Custom code to Slack

Keep your agent
Your loop, model calls, and tools stay in your codebase exactly as they are. Novu Connect wraps the input and output, so your agent code does not change when you add Slack.
Connect the channel
Run npx novu connect --channel slack --runtime custom-code. The CLI scaffolds a bridge route in your app and connects Slack. You can also paste the prompt below into your coding agent and let it wire the bridge for you.
Wire the bridge handler
The CLI prints a requirements file with the bridge route and handler. Point the handler at your agent: it receives each Slack message with conversation context, and whatever it returns routes back to the same conversation.
Go live
Sign in to keep the agent live, then run your dev server. Your agent now holds a two-way conversation in Slack, and the same agent can reach every other channel from one thread.

Every Custom code connect command

$npx novu connect --channel slack --runtime custom-code

Prompt for your coding agent

Connect this project's Custom code agent to Slack with Novu using instructions from https://novu.co/agents.md

Full setup for Custom code lives in the Custom code connect guide.

Custom code and Slack, common questions

Yes. That is what the custom-code runtime is for. The bridge is a plain handler: Novu passes in each Slack message with its conversation context, and whatever you return goes back to the user.

Connect your Custom code agent to another channel

Same agent, built once. Pick where it talks next, and it holds one conversation across every channel.

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