slack

name	slack
description	Interact with Slack workspaces using browser automation. Use when the user needs to check unread channels, navigate Slack, send messages, extract data, find information, search conversations, or automate any Slack task. Triggers include "check my Slack", "what channels have unreads", "send a message to", "search Slack for", "extract from Slack", "find who said", or any task requiring programmatic Slack interaction.
allowed-tools	Bash(chrome-use:*), Bash(chrome-use:*), Bash(abs:*), Bash(npx chrome-use:*), Bash(npx chrome-use:*)

Slack Automation

Interact with Slack workspaces to check messages, extract data, and automate common tasks.

Quick Start

Connect to an existing Slack browser session or open Slack:

# Connect to existing session on port 9222 (typical for already-open Slack)
chrome-use connect 9222

# Or open Slack if not already running
chrome-use open https://app.slack.com

Then take a snapshot to see what's available:

chrome-use snapshot -i

Core Workflow

1. Connect/Navigate: Open or connect to Slack
2. Snapshot: Get interactive elements with refs (@e1, @e2, etc.)
3. Navigate: Click tabs, expand sections, or navigate to specific channels
4. Extract/Interact: Read data or perform actions
5. Screenshot: Capture evidence of findings

# Example: Check unread channels
chrome-use connect 9222
chrome-use snapshot -i
# Look for "More unreads" button
chrome-use click @e21  # Ref for "More unreads" button
chrome-use screenshot slack-unreads.png

Common Tasks

Checking Unread Messages

# Connect to Slack
chrome-use connect 9222

# Take snapshot to locate unreads button
chrome-use snapshot -i

# Look for:
# - "More unreads" button (usually near top of sidebar)
# - "Unreads" toggle in Activity tab (shows unread count)
# - Channel names with badges/bold text indicating unreads

# Navigate to Activity tab to see all unreads in one view
chrome-use click @e14  # Activity tab (ref may vary)
chrome-use wait 1000
chrome-use screenshot activity-unreads.png

# Or check DMs tab
chrome-use click @e13  # DMs tab
chrome-use screenshot dms.png

# Or expand "More unreads" in sidebar
chrome-use click @e21  # More unreads button
chrome-use wait 500
chrome-use screenshot expanded-unreads.png

Navigating to a Channel

# Search for channel in sidebar or by name
chrome-use snapshot -i

# Look for channel name in the list (e.g., "engineering", "product-design")
# Click on the channel treeitem ref
chrome-use click @e94  # Example: engineering channel ref
chrome-use wait --load networkidle
chrome-use screenshot channel.png

Finding Messages/Threads

# Use Slack search
chrome-use snapshot -i
chrome-use click @e5  # Search button (typical ref)
chrome-use fill @e_search "keyword"
chrome-use press Enter
chrome-use wait --load networkidle
chrome-use screenshot search-results.png

Extracting Channel Information

# Get list of all visible channels
chrome-use snapshot --json > slack-snapshot.json

# Parse for channel names and metadata
# Look for treeitem elements with level=2 (sub-channels under sections)

Checking Channel Details

# Open a channel
chrome-use click @e_channel_ref
chrome-use wait 1000

# Get channel info (members, description, etc.)
chrome-use snapshot -i
chrome-use screenshot channel-details.png

# Scroll through messages
chrome-use scroll down 500
chrome-use screenshot channel-messages.png

Taking Notes/Capturing State

When you need to document findings from Slack:

# Take annotated screenshot (shows element numbers)
chrome-use screenshot --annotate slack-state.png

# Take full-page screenshot
chrome-use screenshot --full slack-full.png

# Get current URL for reference
chrome-use get url

# Get page title
chrome-use get title

Sidebar Structure

Understanding Slack's sidebar helps you navigate efficiently:

- Threads
- Huddles
- Drafts & sent
- Directories
- [Section Headers - External connections, Starred, Channels, etc.]
  - [Channels listed as treeitems]
- Direct Messages
  - [DMs listed]
- Apps
  - [App shortcuts]
- [More unreads] button (toggles unread channels list)

Key refs to look for:

• @e12 - Home tab (usually)
• @e13 - DMs tab
• @e14 - Activity tab
• @e5 - Search button
• @e21 - More unreads button (varies by session)

Tabs in Slack

After clicking on a channel, you'll see tabs:

• Messages - Channel conversation
• Files - Shared files
• Pins - Pinned messages
• Add canvas - Collaborative canvas
• Other tabs depending on workspace setup

Click tab refs to switch views and get different information.

Extracting Data from Slack

Get Text Content

# Get a message or element's text
chrome-use get text @e_message_ref

Parse Accessibility Tree

# Full snapshot as JSON for programmatic parsing
chrome-use snapshot --json > output.json

# Look for:
# - Channel names (name field in treeitem)
# - Message content (in listitem/document elements)
# - User names (button elements with user info)
# - Timestamps (link elements with time info)

Count Unreads

# After expanding unreads section:
chrome-use snapshot -i | grep -c "treeitem"
# Each treeitem with a channel name in the unreads section is one unread

Best Practices

• Connect to existing sessions: Use chrome-use connect 9222 if Slack is already open. This is faster than opening a new browser.
• Take snapshots before clicking: Always snapshot -i to identify refs before clicking buttons.
• Re-snapshot after navigation: After navigating to a new channel or section, take a fresh snapshot to find new refs.
• Use JSON snapshots for parsing: When you need to extract structured data, use snapshot --json for machine-readable output.
• Pace interactions: Add sleep 1 between rapid interactions to let the UI update.
• Check accessibility tree: The accessibility tree shows what screen readers (and your automation) can see. If an element isn't in the snapshot, it may be hidden or require scrolling.
• Scroll in sidebar: Use chrome-use scroll down 300 --selector ".p-sidebar" to scroll within the Slack sidebar if channel list is long.

Limitations

• Cannot access Slack API: This uses browser automation, not the Slack API. No OAuth, webhooks, or bot tokens needed.
• Session-specific: Screenshots and snapshots are tied to the current browser session.
• Rate limiting: Slack may rate-limit rapid interactions. Add delays between commands if needed.
• Workspace-specific: You interact with your own workspace -- no cross-workspace automation.

Debugging

Check console for errors

Console/error capture is off by default in this stealth fork — launch the session with AGENT_BROWSER_CAPTURE_CONSOLE=1 first, or these return empty.

chrome-use console
chrome-use errors

Get current page state

chrome-use get url
chrome-use get title
chrome-use screenshot page-state.png

Example: Full Unread Check

#!/bin/bash

# Connect to Slack
chrome-use connect 9222

# Take initial snapshot
echo "=== Checking Slack unreads ==="
chrome-use snapshot -i > snapshot.txt

# Check Activity tab for unreads
chrome-use click @e14  # Activity tab
chrome-use wait 1000
chrome-use screenshot activity.png
ACTIVITY_RESULT=$(chrome-use get text @e_main_area)
echo "Activity: $ACTIVITY_RESULT"

# Check DMs
chrome-use click @e13  # DMs tab
chrome-use wait 1000
chrome-use screenshot dms.png

# Check unread channels in sidebar
chrome-use click @e21  # More unreads button
chrome-use wait 500
chrome-use snapshot -i > unreads-expanded.txt
chrome-use screenshot unreads.png

# Summary
echo "=== Summary ==="
echo "See activity.png, dms.png, and unreads.png for full details"

References

• Slack docs: https://slack.com/help
• Web experience: https://app.slack.com
• Keyboard shortcuts: Type ? in Slack for shortcut list