Google Chat CLI

Interactive Google Chat CLI for sending DMs, posting to spaces, and running a live terminal chat shell as your authenticated Google account.

Features:

• resolve an existing DM by email
• create a DM if one does not exist
• send a DM
• send a message to a known space
• list spaces
• list recent messages in a space
• run an interactive live shell with polling

Files:

• gchat-setup — OAuth setup helper
• gchat — main non-interactive CLI
• gchat-live — interactive live chat shell
• setup.py — underlying setup script
• gchat.py — main non-interactive implementation
• gchat_live.py — interactive REPL/watch mode

One-time setup

1. Create a Google OAuth desktop client in Google Cloud Console.
2. Enable the Google Chat API for that project.
3. Download the OAuth client JSON.
4. Store it: ~/docs/google-chat-cli/gchat-setup --client-secret /path/to/client_secret.json
5. Get auth URL: ~/docs/google-chat-cli/gchat-setup --auth-url
6. Open it, approve, then paste back the full redirected URL.
7. Exchange it: ~/docs/google-chat-cli/gchat-setup --auth-code 'PASTE_FULL_REDIRECT_URL_HERE'
8. Verify: ~/docs/google-chat-cli/gchat-setup --check

Important: if you authenticated before the live CLI existed, re-run auth once so the token includes message read scope: ~/docs/google-chat-cli/gchat-setup --auth-url then ~/docs/google-chat-cli/gchat-setup --auth-code 'PASTE_FULL_REDIRECT_URL_HERE'

Stored auth lives in ~/.google-chat-cli/.

Usage

List spaces: ~/docs/google-chat-cli/gchat spaces-list --max 20

Resolve a DM by email: ~/docs/google-chat-cli/gchat dm-resolve person@example.com --create-if-missing

Send a DM: ~/docs/google-chat-cli/gchat send-dm person@example.com 'hey, quick note'

List recent messages in a space: ~/docs/google-chat-cli/gchat messages-list spaces/AAAA1234567 --max 20

Send to a known space: ~/docs/google-chat-cli/gchat send-space spaces/AAAA1234567 'status update here'

Interactive live shell: ~/docs/google-chat-cli/gchat-live

Jump straight into a DM and watch: ~/docs/google-chat-cli/gchat-live --dm person@example.com --watch

Notes

• This uses user OAuth and sends messages as you.
• DM creation relies on Google Chat API spaces.setup and spaces.findDirectMessage.
• If the other person blocks you, or org policy forbids it, DM creation will fail.
• If you use multiple Google accounts, authorize the right one. Google will happily let you shoot yourself in the foot.