Set Up Telegram

Pinchy supports Telegram as a channel for your agents. Each agent can have its own Telegram bot, and users link their Telegram account once to access all bots they have permission to use.

Prerequisites

• A running Pinchy instance with at least one agent
• A Telegram account
• Admin access to Pinchy

Step 1: Create a Telegram Bot

1. Open BotFather in Telegram (or use the desktop/web app for easy copy-paste)
2. Send /newbot
3. Choose a display name for your bot
4. Choose a username ending in bot (must be unique on Telegram)
5. Copy the bot token BotFather gives you

Tip

Use Telegram Web or the desktop app to easily copy the token.

Step 2: Connect the Bot to Smithers

1. Go to Settings → Telegram
2. Click Set up Telegram
3. Paste the bot token
4. Click Connect

Your bot token is encrypted at rest and never leaves your server.

Step 3: Link Your Telegram Account

After an admin connects a bot, each team member links their own Telegram account:

1. Go to Settings → Telegram
2. Scan the QR code with your phone (or click “Open in Telegram”)
3. Send any message to the bot
4. Copy the pairing code from the bot’s response
5. Paste it into Pinchy and click Link

You’re now linked. Messages you send to the bot are answered by the agent.

Connect Additional Agents

Each agent can have its own Telegram bot. To connect a second agent:

Before you start

Pinchy’s main Telegram bot must already be set up in Settings → Telegram (Steps 1 and 2 above). Users link their Telegram account via the main bot; without it, additional agent bots have no way to receive messages. If you see a “Telegram isn’t set up yet” message in the agent’s Telegram tab, go to Settings → Telegram first.

1. Create a new bot via BotFather (repeat Step 1)
2. Go to Agent Settings → Telegram for the agent you want to connect
3. Paste the new bot token and click Connect

Note

Each bot token can only be used by one agent. If you try to use the same token for two agents, Pinchy will reject it.

How Permissions Work

Telegram access follows Pinchy’s permission model:

• Agents with visibility “All”: Every linked user can message the bot
• Restricted agents: Only users in the agent’s allowed groups (and admins) can message the bot
• If a user messages a bot they don’t have access to, they receive a pairing prompt instead of an agent response

When group memberships or agent visibility change, Telegram access is updated automatically.

Unlinking and Removing

• Unlink your account: Settings → Telegram → Unlink. You can re-link anytime.
• Disconnect an agent’s bot: Agent Settings → Telegram → Disconnect (not available for Smithers)
• Remove Telegram for everyone: Settings → Telegram → Remove Telegram for everyone. This disconnects all bots and unlinks all users.

Caution

Smithers’ bot cannot be disconnected individually. Use “Remove Telegram for everyone” to remove all Telegram integration at once.