How to Integrate Bolt.new with Skype

Go to portal.azure.com and sign in with your Microsoft account. In the search bar, type 'Azure Bot' and select 'Azure Bot' from the services list. Click 'Create'. Fill in the form: Bot handle (unique name for your bot), subscription, resource group (create new if needed), and location. For 'Microsoft App ID', select 'Create new Microsoft App ID' — this generates a new App ID automatically. Click 'Review and create', then 'Create'. Wait 1-2 minutes for the resource to deploy. Once deployed, go to the bot resource → Configuration. You'll see your Microsoft App ID (a GUID). Click 'Manage Password' to open the App Registration. In the App Registration, go to 'Certificates & secrets' → 'New client secret'. Give it a description, set expiry (24 months recommended), and click 'Add'. Copy the secret VALUE immediately — you cannot see it again. This is your MICROSOFT_APP_SECRET. Return to the Azure Bot resource → Channels. You'll see default channels listed. Click the Skype channel icon to add it. Review the terms and click 'Save'. The Skype channel is now enabled. After configuring your bot endpoint URL (done in the next steps after deploying), you can find the bot's Skype add link in the Skype channel settings under 'Publish'.

1# .env
2MICROSOFT_APP_ID=your-azure-app-id-guid
3MICROSOFT_APP_SECRET=your-app-secret-value

The bot's messaging endpoint receives POST requests from Azure Bot Service whenever a Skype user interacts with your bot. Each interaction arrives as a Bot Framework Activity object — a JSON structure containing the activity type (message, conversationUpdate, etc.), the sender's information, and the message content. Your endpoint must authenticate each incoming request by verifying the Authorization header using the Bot Framework's token validation. The Bot Framework sends a JWT Bearer token with each request that you validate against Microsoft's JWKS endpoint. For a production bot, use the botbuilder npm package which handles authentication, serialization, and reply sending automatically. For a lightweight implementation without the full SDK, you can validate tokens manually and use the Bot Connector REST API to send replies. The endpoint must respond within 15 seconds — for longer operations, acknowledge immediately and process asynchronously. Remember: this endpoint only works after deployment since it receives incoming HTTP requests from Azure's servers, which cannot reach Bolt's WebContainer.

1// app/api/bot/skype/route.ts
2import { NextResponse } from 'next/server';
3import { BotFrameworkAdapter, TurnContext, ActivityTypes } from 'botbuilder';
4
5const adapter = new BotFrameworkAdapter({
6  appId: process.env.MICROSOFT_APP_ID,
7  appPassword: process.env.MICROSOFT_APP_SECRET,
8});
9
10adapter.onTurnError = async (context: TurnContext, error: Error) => {
11  console.error('Bot error:', error);
12  await context.sendActivity('An error occurred processing your request.');
13};
14
15async function handleBot(context: TurnContext) {
16  if (context.activity.type === ActivityTypes.Message) {
17    const text = context.activity.text?.trim() || '';
18    await context.sendActivity(`You said: ${text}`);
19  } else if (context.activity.type === ActivityTypes.ConversationUpdate) {
20    const membersAdded = context.activity.membersAdded || [];
21    for (const member of membersAdded) {
22      if (member.id !== context.activity.recipient.id) {
23        await context.sendActivity(
24          'Hello! I am your Skype bot. Type /help to see available commands.'
25        );
26      }
27    }
28  }
29}
30
31export async function POST(request: Request) {
32  const body = await request.text();
33  const headers = Object.fromEntries(request.headers.entries());
34
35  return new Promise<Response>((resolve) => {
36    const res = {
37      status: 200,
38      end: () => resolve(NextResponse.json({ ok: true })),
39    };
40    const req = {
41      body: JSON.parse(body),
42      headers,
43    };
44    adapter.processActivity(req as never, res as never, handleBot);
45  });
46}

After deploying your Bolt app to Netlify or Bolt Cloud, you need to register the deployed bot endpoint URL in Azure so the Bot Service knows where to send Skype messages. Go to portal.azure.com → your Azure Bot resource → Configuration. In the 'Messaging endpoint' field, enter your deployed API route URL (e.g., https://your-app.netlify.app/api/bot/skype). Click 'Apply'. Azure will validate that the endpoint is reachable and responds correctly. If validation fails, check that your deployed app is running and that the endpoint returns 200 for the Bot Framework's validation request. To test the bot before connecting to Skype, use Azure's built-in 'Test in Web Chat' feature in the Azure Portal — this lets you send messages to your bot and see responses without a Skype account. After testing in Web Chat, go to the Skype channel settings in Azure → 'Add to Skype' link and click it to add your bot to your Skype contacts. Send it a message to test the full end-to-end flow. Note that bot approval for publishing to all Skype users requires Microsoft review, but personal bot testing (adding directly via the Skype link) works immediately.

Given Microsoft's shutdown of consumer Skype in May 2025, any new bot development should target Microsoft Teams rather than Skype. The migration path is straightforward if you're already using the Bot Framework: Teams uses the same Bot Framework SDK and Activity model as Skype. The core bot handling code is identical — the same ActivityTypes.Message handler works for both channels. To add Teams support, go to your Azure Bot → Channels → Microsoft Teams and enable it. Your existing bot immediately becomes available in Teams. Teams provides additional features not available in Skype: Teams-specific activities (meeting joined, member added to team), Adaptive Cards for rich interactive content, task modules (pop-up dialogs), messaging extensions (slash commands), tabs (web content embedded in Teams), and app manifests for distributing your bot through the Teams Store. Update your bot to use Teams-specific message formats: instead of plain text, use Adaptive Card JSON for structured, interactive responses. Teams also supports proactive messaging to channels (not just conversations), which allows your bot to post notifications to Teams channels — more powerful than Skype's person-to-person messaging model.

1// Teams-specific Adaptive Card response
2import { CardFactory, MessageFactory } from 'botbuilder';
3
4async function handleTeamsMessage(context: TurnContext, text: string) {
5  const card = CardFactory.adaptiveCard({
6    type: 'AdaptiveCard',
7    version: '1.4',
8    body: [
9      {
10        type: 'TextBlock',
11        size: 'Medium',
12        weight: 'Bolder',
13        text: 'Bot Response',
14      },
15      {
16        type: 'TextBlock',
17        text: `You asked: ${text}`,
18        wrap: true,
19      },
20    ],
21    actions: [
22      {
23        type: 'Action.Submit',
24        title: 'Get Help',
25        data: { action: 'help' },
26      },
27      {
28        type: 'Action.Submit',
29        title: 'View Status',
30        data: { action: 'status' },
31      },
32    ],
33  });
34
35  await context.sendActivity(MessageFactory.attachment(card));
36}