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AI chatbot for Next.js

Biel.ai is an advanced chatbot designed to transform the way users interact with your technical documentation. By leveraging AI, Biel.ai delivers instant, context-rich answers, making your documentation more accessible and reducing the need for repetitive support tasks.

Here's a step-by-step guide to help you install Biel.ai in your Next.js project using NPM.

Prerequisites​

Before starting, ensure you have the following:

  • A Biel.ai account. If you don't have one, sign up for free.
  • A project created in your Biel.ai dashboard. Follow the Quickstart guide to create one.
  • A Next.js application ready to install Biel.ai.
  • Node.js installed.

Installation​

The Biel.ai widget enables a conversational chat powered by AI in your site.

Chatbot widget for docs

To integrate the Biel.ai widget into your Next.js site:

  1. Open your terminal or command prompt. Navigate to your project's root directory using the cd command:

    cd path/to/your/project

    Replace path/to/your/project with your project's actual directory path.

  2. With your terminal still open, run the following command to install Biel.ai:

    npm install biel-react
    info

    If you're using yarn as your package manager, run yarn add biel-react instead of the npm command above.

    This will download and install the Biel.ai package into your project.

  3. Create a wrapper for the chatbot by creating a file under the path components/biel-search.tsx and paste the following code:

    import React, { useEffect } from 'react';
    import { BielButton } from 'biel-react';
    import { JSX, defineCustomElements } from 'biel-search/loader';
    import { StyleReactProps } from 'biel-react/dist/types/react-component-lib/interfaces';
    import 'biel-search/dist/biel-search/biel-search.css';

    const DynamicBielButtonComponent = (props: React.JSX.IntrinsicAttributes & JSX.BielButton & Omit<React.HTMLAttributes<HTMLBielButtonElement>, "style"> & StyleReactProps & React.RefAttributes<HTMLBielButtonElement>) => {
    useEffect(() => {
        defineCustomElements(windowF);
    }, []);

    return <BielButton {...props} />;
    };

    export default DynamicBielButtonComponent;

  4. In the component where you wish to display the chatbot (often _pages/app.tsx or app/layout.tsx), include it shown below:

    'use client'
    import dynamic from 'next/dynamic';

    export default function Banner() {

    const DynamicBielButton = dynamic(() => import('@/components/utils/biel-search'), {
        ssr: false,
    });  

    return (
    <div className="App">
    {/* Other components and content */}
        <DynamicBielButton
            project="<YOUR_PROJECT_ID>"
            header-title="Biel.ai chatbot"
            button-position="bottom-right"
            modal-position="bottom-right"
            button-style="dark">
            Ask AI
        </DynamicBielButton>
    </div>
    );

    Replace <YOUR_PROJECT_ID> with your project's ID from the Biel.ai dashboard.

  5. Start your Next.js app by running npm start or yarn start in your terminal. Once it compiles successfully, verify that the chatbot appears and functions correctly on your site.

Next steps​

For more about customization and additional features exploration, check out the customization section.

Need assistance? We're here to help! Reach out to us at Biel.ai Support.