pi-matrix-bridge

Bridge Matrix into pi — talk to your pi coding agent from any Matrix client.

Remote users can interact with your pi coding agent via Element, FluffyChat, or any other Matrix app.

Matrix-only fork of tintinweb/pi-messenger-bridge (MIT). The original supports Telegram, WhatsApp, Slack, Discord, and Matrix; this fork keeps Matrix only.

Features

• 💬 Matrix support (Element X, Element Web, FluffyChat, any homeserver)
• 🔐 Challenge-based authentication (6-digit codes)
• 🎛️ Interactive menu (/matrix-bridge) for setup and management
• 🔒 Single-instance guard — prevents duplicate bot polling with sub-agents
• 📊 Live status widget (toggleable)
• 💾 Persistent config (auth state, auto-connect, widget preference)
• 🔧 Tool call visibility for remote users
• 💭 Live streaming — thinking and the response stream into editable messages so you can steer/stop mid-turn
• ⏳ Rate-limit handling — backs off and retries on Matrix 429s so messages are never silently dropped
• 📝 Multi-turn conversation support
• 🔑 Secure permissions (chmod 600 for config files, 700 for directories)

Setup

1. Install

pi install npm:pi-matrix-bridge

2. Configure Matrix

Works with any Matrix homeserver — Element X, Element Web, FluffyChat, etc. The bot auto-joins rooms it's invited to.

1. Register a bot account on your homeserver (or reuse an existing user)
2. Get a dedicated access token by logging in via the API (see below)
3. Note your homeserver URL (e.g. https://matrix.org)

Generate a fresh token — don't reuse an existing one. Reusing the access token from a client you're already signed into (e.g. Element Web's Settings → Help & About → Advanced) shares that client's device and crypto store, which causes E2EE key conflicts and decryption failures. Instead, log in via the API to mint a brand-new device + token just for the bridge:

curl -XPOST 'https://matrix.org/_matrix/client/v3/login' \
  -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  -d '{
    "type": "m.login.password",
    "identifier": { "type": "m.id.user", "user": "your_username" },
    "password": "YOUR_ACCOUNT_PASSWORD",
    "initial_device_display_name": "pi-matrix-bridge"
  }'

Replace your_username, the password, and the homeserver URL. The JSON response contains access_token (use it below) and a fresh device_id. To revoke it later, log that device out from your Matrix client.

/matrix-bridge configure matrix <homeserver-url> <access-token>

Or set via environment variables:

export PI_MATRIX_BRIDGE_HOMESERVER="https://matrix.org"
export PI_MATRIX_BRIDGE_ACCESS_TOKEN="syt_..."

E2EE is on by default. Verify the bot's device once from another Matrix client (Element, etc.) — until verified, encrypted rooms can't be decrypted in either direction.

Set "encryption": false in the matrix config to disable — useful for non-encrypted rooms only, or to bypass crypto-store/server desync (e.g. M_UNKNOWN: One time key … already exists). Caveat: with E2EE off, the homeserver sees plaintext, and the bot can't participate in encrypted rooms at all.

3. Connect

/matrix-bridge connect

4. Authenticate Users

When a user messages your bot for the first time, they'll receive a 6-digit challenge code. The code is displayed in your pi terminal. Share it with the user (e.g., via DM).

The user enters the code in the bot chat to become a trusted user.

Commands

Command	Description
/matrix-bridge	Open interactive menu (configure, connect, widget, help)
/matrix-bridge status	Show connection and user status
/matrix-bridge connect	Connect to Matrix
/matrix-bridge disconnect	Disconnect from Matrix
/matrix-bridge configure matrix <homeserver-url> <access-token>	Set Matrix credentials via CLI
/matrix-bridge widget	Toggle status widget on/off
/matrix-bridge toggletools	Toggle tool call visibility in remote messages
/matrix-bridge togglethinking	Toggle live thinking (💭) visibility
/matrix-bridge help	Show command reference

Admin commands (in DM with the bot)

Trusted users can DM the bot directly to manage state. Reply with /help for the full list. Commands accept either a / or ! prefix (e.g. /help or !help).

Command	Description
/help	Show admin command reference
/trusted	List trusted users
/revoke <userId>	Revoke trust for a user
/channels	List enabled channels
/enable <chatId> <all|mentions|trusted-only>	Enable a channel
/disable <chatId>	Disable a channel
/toggletools	Toggle tool call visibility in replies
/togglethinking	Toggle live thinking (💭) visibility
/session	Show current session info (model, context usage, status)
/shutdown	Stop pi — under systemd this restarts into a fresh session (see below)

Any authorized user (not just admins) can also send:

Message	Description
stop	Interrupt the current turn. Also accepts /stop or !stop.

Live streaming

Both the model's thinking (💭) and its response stream into messages that are edited in place (token-by-token, throttled) as they're generated — so you can read where a turn is heading and stop (or steer) before it commits to a wrong action. Each tool call (🔧) appears the moment it starts running (handy for tools that take a few seconds), and its output (↳, truncated) is appended when it finishes. The typing indicator stays active alongside them.

Thinking is on by default — toggle with /togglethinking (DM admin) or /matrix-bridge togglethinking, or set "hideThinking": true in the config. (The response always streams.)

Rate-limit handling

Matrix homeservers return 429 Too Many Requests (with a retry_after_ms hint) when you send too fast — and live streaming, which edits messages many times per turn, makes bursts common. Rather than letting a rate-limited message silently vanish, the bridge routes every outbound send and edit through a single serialized queue:

• On a 429 it pauses all sends, waits the server-requested retry_after, then retries the same message — so nothing is dropped, and ordering is preserved.
• The first message delivered after a backoff carries a small note (⏳ *(delayed — rate limited)*) so you know a delay occurred.
• Typing indicators are suppressed while rate-limited (they'd only add load), and rapid in-place edits to the same message are coalesced so a backoff doesn't flush a run of stale intermediate edits.

This is automatic — there's nothing to configure.

Configuration

Config is stored at ~/.pi/matrix-bridge.json with secure permissions (chmod 600).

Example config:

{
  "matrix": { "homeserverUrl": "https://matrix.org", "accessToken": "syt_...", "encryption": true },
  "auth": {
    "trustedUsers": ["matrix:@alice:matrix.org"]
  },
  "showWidget": true
}

Environment Variables

Environment variables override file config:

• PI_MATRIX_BRIDGE_AUTO_CONNECT — connect on startup. Defaults to off — set to 1 to activate the bridge. Left unset, the plugin stays dormant (no connection) and you can connect manually with /matrix-bridge connect. See Headless / always-on.
• PI_MATRIX_BRIDGE_HOMESERVER — Matrix homeserver URL (e.g. https://matrix.org)
• PI_MATRIX_BRIDGE_ACCESS_TOKEN — Matrix access token

Security

• Config file: ~/.pi/matrix-bridge.json (chmod 600 - owner read/write only)
• Config directory: ~/.pi/ (chmod 700 - owner only)
• Environment variables take precedence over config file
• Challenge-based authentication for all new users
• Transport-namespaced user IDs prevent impersonation

Troubleshooting

⚠️ Matrix setup error: M_UNKNOWN: One time key signed_curve25519:… already exists

The bot's crypto store has drifted out of sync with the homeserver (the device's one-time keys no longer match).

1. Stop pi
2. Delete your old pi matrix crypto storage rm ~/.pi/matrix-bridge-crypto ~/.pi/matrix-bridge-store.json -r
3. Mint a fresh access token / device and reconfigure with it:

curl -XPOST 'https://matrix.org/_matrix/client/v3/login' \
  -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  -d '{
    "type": "m.login.password",
    "identifier": { "type": "m.id.user", "user": "your_username" },
    "password": "YOUR_ACCOUNT_PASSWORD",
    "initial_device_display_name": "pi-matrix-bridge"
  }'

Then set the new access_token (via /matrix-bridge configure matrix <homeserver> <token> or PI_MATRIX_BRIDGE_ACCESS_TOKEN) and reconnect. Deleting the stale crypto store (~/.pi/matrix-bridge-crypto) before reconnecting also clears it — the bot's device will then need re-verifying. Alternatively, set "encryption": false in the matrix config to bypass E2EE entirely (the homeserver then sees plaintext).

Architecture

Uses pi's native sendUserMessage() and turn_end events for two-way communication. No tool-loop hacks needed — this is the pi-native way.

Single-instance connection guard prevents duplicate polling when sub-agents spawn (global flag + PID lock file at ~/.pi/matrix-bridge.lock).

Headless / always-on (systemd)

Run pi as a dedicated, always-on Matrix endpoint you can talk to from your phone — including starting a fresh conversation remotely.

Activation

The plugin does not connect on startup unless PI_MATRIX_BRIDGE_AUTO_CONNECT=1. This lets a dedicated headless instance own the bot (it sets the env var) while a desktop pi with the same plugin installed stays dormant — no connection, no status widget, no notices. The desktop can still connect on demand with /matrix-bridge connect.

Install the service

The bundled installer writes a systemd --user unit, enables lingering (so it runs without an active login), and starts it:

./scripts/install-systemd.sh

Options: --name (unit name, default pi-matrix-bridge), --workdir (the agent's working directory — required; prompted if omitted), --pi (path to the pi binary), and --uninstall. If PI_MATRIX_BRIDGE_HOMESERVER / PI_MATRIX_BRIDGE_ACCESS_TOKEN are exported in your shell, they're baked into the unit; otherwise pi reads ~/.pi/matrix-bridge.json.

The generated unit sets PI_MATRIX_BRIDGE_AUTO_CONNECT=1, Restart=always, and RestartSec=2. Manage it with:

systemctl --user status pi-matrix-bridge
journalctl --user -u pi-matrix-bridge -f

/shutdown = fresh session

pi runs headless in "print" mode, but the bridge's open sockets keep the process alive as a daemon. The /shutdown admin command stops that process; with Restart=always, systemd relaunches pi, and since there's no --continue/--resume, it comes back in a brand-new session. The restart is the new session — no PTY, no tmux, no hacks.

Note: /shutdown resets the conversation for everyone and causes a few seconds of downtime. That's fine for a single-user mobile bridge. Without a supervisor, /shutdown simply stops pi — exactly what the name says.

Development

npm install
npm run build        # compile TypeScript
npm run typecheck    # type-check without emitting
npm run test         # run tests
npm run lint         # biome lint
npm run lint:fix     # biome lint with auto-fix

Credits

Forked from tintinweb/pi-messenger-bridge by tintinweb and contributors (MIT). This fork strips it down to Matrix only.

License

MIT — see LICENSE.