Chat UI is a TypeScript-based SvelteKit app that provides an OpenAI-compatible chat interface and can connect to various OpenAI-like backends. It emphasizes a single OpenAI protocol, with options for local routing, MongoDB storage, and optional MCP tool integrations.
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What it is
Chat UI is an open source chat interface for LLMs. It is a SvelteKit app and it powers the HuggingChat app on hf.co/chat. It supports OpenAI-compatible APIs via OPENAI_BASE_URL and the /models endpoint, and removes legacy provider-specific integrations.
How it works
The app discovers models from ${OPENAI_BASE_URL}/models and uses environment variables to configure the backend URL and API key. It can optionally route requests server-side using a local heuristic via an Omni router and route to multimodal, agentic, or default routes. Tools can be enabled through MCP servers and OpenAI function calling. The UI can be themed and configured through environment variables, including model discovery via MODELS and per-model overrides.
Getting started
Steps from the README include:
- Clone the repo and install dependencies, then run the dev server:
git clone https://github.com/huggingface/chat-ui
cd chat-ui
npm install
npm run dev -- --open
- Configure environment variables such as OPENAI_BASE_URL and OPENAI_API_KEY, and optionally MONGODB_URL for database storage. For a quick start, the README highlights using the Hugging Face Inference Providers router.
Recent releases
Latest release: v0.10.0 (2026-05-11): v0.10.0 — Release notes draft. Previous entries include v0.9.6 (2026-01-21) and v0.9.5 (2025-06-05). The changelog mentions a refactor for a new API and universal load functions, and features like a per-model reasoning toggle.
Traction
Stars: 10864. Forks: 1661. Open issues: 263. (Presence of these numbers is shown in the repo facts.)
Behind the repo
Not included in the provided facts. (Linked startup/company information not present.)
Caveats
License: Apache-2.0. The README notes that Chat UI supports OpenAI-compatible APIs only and that legacy provider integrations are removed. The root instructions show how to start with a dev server and how to run production builds. The project uses TypeScript and is built as a SvelteKit application.