Integrating Vercel AI with React Native / Expo Project: A Step-by-Step Guide

Integrating Vercel AI with React Native / Expo Project: A Step-by-Step Guide cover

If you're building a React Native/Expo app and want to add AI-powered features, Vercel AI is a fantastic choice. It provides a simple and efficient way to integrate AI models into your app. In this guide, we'll walk through the process of integrating Vercel AI into a React Native/Expo project. We'll also use NativeWind for styling, as it’s a great way to bring Tailwind-like utility classes to React Native. Let’s get started! 💪🏻

Prerequisites

Before diving in, make sure you have the following set up:

  1. Node.js installed on your machine.
  2. Expo CLI installed globally (npm install -g expo-cli).
  3. A basic understanding of React Native and Expo.
  4. A Vercel account (you can sign up at vercel.com).

Step 1: Set Up Your React Native/Expo Project

If you don’t already have a project, create one using Expo:

npx create-expo-app@latest AIChatApp
cd AIChatApp

This will set up a new Expo project. Once the project is created, start the development server:

npm start

Step 2: Install Required Dependencies

To integrate Vercel AI, you’ll need to install the ai package from Vercel. Additionally, we’ll install NativeWind for styling.

Run the following command:

npm install ai @react-native-async-storage/async-storage nativewind tailwindcss
  • ai: The Vercel AI SDK for integrating AI models.
  • @react-native-async-storage/async-storage: For storing any necessary data locally.
  • nativewind: To use Tailwind-like utility classes in React Native.
  • tailwindcss: Required for NativeWind to work.

Step 3: Configure NativeWind

NativeWind allows you to use Tailwind CSS classes in React Native. To set it up:

Create a tailwind.config.js file in the root of your project:

npx tailwindcss init

Update the tailwind.config.js file to include the following:

module.exports = {
  content: ['./app/**/*.{js,jsx,ts,tsx}', './components/**/*.{js,jsx,ts,tsx}'],
  theme: {
    extend: {},
  },
  plugins: [],
};

Modify your babel.config.js to include NativeWind:

module.exports = function (api) {
  api.cache(true);
  return {
    presets: ['babel-preset-expo'],
    plugins: ['nativewind/babel'],
  };
};

Restart your development server to apply the changes.

Step 4: Set Up Vercel AI

Now, let’s integrate Vercel AI into your project.

Get an API Key: Go to your Vercel dashboard and create an API key for your project. You’ll need this to authenticate requests to the AI models.

Create a .env File: Store your API key securely in a .env file:

VERCEL_AI_API_KEY=your_api_key_here

Make sure to add .env to your .gitignore file to avoid committing sensitive information.

Install react-native-dotenv: To load environment variables in your project, install the following package:

npm install react-native-dotenv

Then, update your babel.config.js to include the plugin:

module.exports = function (api) {
  api.cache(true);
  return {
    presets: ['babel-preset-expo'],
    plugins: ['nativewind/babel', 'module:react-native-dotenv'],
  };
};

Step 5: Create an AI-Powered Component

Let’s create a simple chat interface that uses Vercel AI to generate responses.

Create a Chat Component: In your components folder, create a new file called Chat.js.

import React, { useState } from 'react';
import { View, TextInput, Button, Text, ScrollView } from 'react-native';
import { useCompletion } from 'ai/react-native';
import AsyncStorage from '@react-native-async-storage/async-storage';

const Chat = () => {
  const [input, setInput] = useState('');
  const { completion, complete } = useCompletion({
    api: 'https://api.vercel.ai/v1/complete',
    headers: {
      Authorization: `Bearer ${process.env.VERCEL_AI_API_KEY}`,
    },
  });

  const handleSend = async () => {
    await complete(input);
    setInput('');
  };

  return (
    <View className="flex-1 p-4">
      <ScrollView className="flex-1 mb-4">
        <Text className="text-lg">{completion}</Text>
      </ScrollView>
      <View className="flex-row">
        <TextInput
          className="flex-1 border border-gray-300 p-2 rounded-l"
          value={input}
          onChangeText={setInput}
          placeholder="Type a message..."
        />
        <Button title="Send" onPress={handleSend} />
      </View>
    </View>
  );
};

export default Chat;

Use the Chat Component: In your App.js, import and use the Chat component:

import React from 'react';
import { SafeAreaView } from 'react-native';
import Chat from './components/Chat';

export default function App() {
  return (
    <SafeAreaView className="flex-1">
      <Chat />
    </SafeAreaView>
  );
}

Step 6: Test Your App

Run your app using npm start and test the chat interface. You should be able to type a message, send it, and see the AI-generated response.

Step 7: Deploy to Vercel (Optional)

If you want to deploy your app, you can use Vercel’s deployment services. Simply connect your GitHub repository to Vercel and deploy your app with a single click.

Conclusion

Congratulations! You’ve successfully integrated Vercel AI into your React Native/Expo project. With this setup, you can now build AI-powered features like chatbots, text completion, and more. NativeWind also makes styling your app a breeze, giving you the flexibility of Tailwind CSS in React Native.

Feel free to explore more advanced features of Vercel AI and customize your app further. Happy coding! 🚀

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