💬 Real-Time Chat Application with AI Assistant

A modern, responsive full-stack real-time chat application built with the MERN stack, featuring Socket.io for real-time communication and AI integration (Google Gemini or Ollama) for an intelligent chatbot assistant.

✨ Features

🔐 Authentication & User Management

• User Registration & Login - Secure authentication with JWT tokens
• Password Encryption - Bcrypt.js for secure password hashing
• Persistent Sessions - Redux Persist for maintaining user sessions
• Profile Photos - Avatar support with gender-based default images

💬 Real-Time Messaging

• Instant Messaging - Real-time chat using Socket.io
• Online Status - See which users are currently online
• Message History - Persistent message storage in MongoDB
• Conversation Management - One-on-one conversations with users
• Read Receipts - Track message delivery and read status

🤖 AI Chatbot Assistant

• Flexible AI Integration - Supports Google Gemini (cloud) or Ollama (local)
• Demo Mode - Works without API key for testing
• Context-Aware - Remembers conversation history (last 10 messages)
• Smart Responses - Helpful, friendly, and concise AI replies
• Secure Backend - AI calls handled server-side
• Privacy Options - Choose cloud (Gemini) or local (Ollama) processing

📱 Responsive Design

• Mobile-First - WhatsApp-like mobile interface
• Desktop Optimized - Clean, modern desktop layout
• Adaptive UI - Seamlessly transitions between screen sizes
• Back Navigation - Easy navigation on mobile devices
• Touch-Friendly - Optimized for touch interactions

🎨 Modern UI/UX

• Glassmorphism - Beautiful glass-effect design with backdrop blur
• Dark Theme - Eye-friendly dark color scheme with indigo accents
• Smooth Animations - Polished transitions and hover effects
• Custom Scrollbars - Styled scrollbars matching the theme
• Message Bubbles - Different styles for sent/received messages
• Online Indicators - Glowing status badges for online users

🛠️ Tech Stack

Frontend

• React 19.1.0 - Modern UI library
• Redux Toolkit - State management
• Redux Persist - Persistent state storage
• React Router DOM - Client-side routing
• Socket.io Client - Real-time communication
• Axios - HTTP client
• React Hot Toast - Beautiful notifications
• React Icons - Icon library
• Tailwind CSS - Utility-first CSS framework

Backend

• Node.js - Runtime environment
• Express 5.1.0 - Web application framework
• MongoDB - NoSQL database
• Mongoose - MongoDB object modeling
• Socket.io - Real-time bidirectional communication
• JWT - JSON Web Tokens for authentication
• Bcrypt.js - Password hashing
• Cookie Parser - Cookie handling middleware
• CORS - Cross-origin resource sharing
• Axios - HTTP client for AI API calls

Additional Tools

• Google Gemini API - Cloud-based AI (default)
• Ollama - Local AI models (optional)
• Nodemon - Development auto-restart
• Dotenv - Environment variable management

Happy Chatting! 💬✨