MessageAI

A Flutter messaging application with real-time translation, AI-powered formality adjustment, and Firebase backend integration. Built with Clean Architecture and offline-first capabilities.

Features

Core Messaging

Real-time messaging with Firebase Firestore
Offline-first architecture using Drift (SQLite) for local caching
Group conversations with multiple participants
Push notifications via Firebase Cloud Messaging
Presence indicators (online/offline, last seen)
Typing indicators in real-time

AI-Powered Features

Automatic translation using Google Translate API
- On-device language detection with ML Kit (<50ms)
- Cloud-based translation via Firebase Functions
- Toggle between original and translated messages
Formality adjustment using GPT-4o-mini
- Three levels: Casual, Neutral, Formal
- Rate limiting and caching for cost optimization

Technical Highlights

Clean Architecture with feature-based organization
Offline-first with automatic sync
Dual storage (Firestore + Drift) for optimal performance
Riverpod for state management with code generation
Firebase Realtime Database for ephemeral data (presence, typing)
Firebase Firestore for persistent data (messages, users)

Prerequisites

Required Software

Flutter SDK (3.0.0 or higher)

# Check Flutter installation
flutter doctor

Dart SDK (3.0.0 or higher, comes with Flutter)

Firebase CLI

npm install -g firebase-tools
firebase login

Platform-Specific Requirements

iOS:
- Xcode 14.0 or higher
- CocoaPods
```
sudo gem install cocoapods
```
Android:
- Android Studio
- Android SDK (API level 21 or higher)
- Java Development Kit (JDK) 11 or higher

Required Accounts

Firebase Project
- Create a project at Firebase Console
- Enable Authentication (Email/Password)
- Enable Firestore Database
- Enable Realtime Database
- Enable Cloud Functions
- Enable Cloud Storage
API Keys (for Cloud Functions)
- Google Cloud Translation API key
- OpenAI API key (for formality adjustment)

Installation

1. Clone the Repository

git clone https://github.com/yourusername/message_ai.git
cd message_ai

2. Install Flutter Dependencies

flutter pub get

3. Run Code Generation

This project uses code generation for Riverpod providers and Drift database tables:

dart run build_runner build --delete-conflicting-outputs

Note: Run this command whenever you modify:

Riverpod providers (files using @riverpod)
Drift database tables (files extending Table)

4. Install iOS Dependencies (iOS only)

cd ios
pod install
cd ..

Firebase Setup

1. Create Firebase Project

Go to Firebase Console
Click "Add project"
Follow the setup wizard
Enable Google Analytics (optional)

2. Configure Firebase for Flutter

Install FlutterFire CLI:

dart pub global activate flutterfire_cli

Configure your app (run from project root):

flutterfire configure

This will:

Create Firebase apps for iOS and Android
Download configuration files (google-services.json, GoogleService-Info.plist)
Generate firebase_options.dart

3. Enable Firebase Services

In the Firebase Console, enable:

Authentication:

Go to Authentication → Sign-in method
Enable "Email/Password"

Firestore Database:

Go to Firestore Database → Create database
Choose production mode
Select a location (e.g., us-central1)

Realtime Database:

Go to Realtime Database → Create database
Choose locked mode (will be configured via rules)
Select same location as Firestore

Cloud Storage:

Go to Storage → Get started
Use default security rules

4. Deploy Security Rules

Deploy Firestore rules:

firebase deploy --only firestore:rules

Deploy Realtime Database rules:

firebase deploy --only database

5. Setup Cloud Functions

Navigate to functions directory and install dependencies:

cd functions
pip install -r requirements.txt
cd ..

Configure API keys using Firebase Secret Manager:

# Set Google Translate API key
firebase functions:secrets:set TRANSLATION_API_KEY_SECRET

# Set OpenAI API key
firebase functions:secrets:set OPENAI_API_KEY_SECRET

Deploy functions:

firebase deploy --only functions

Available Functions:

translate_message - Real-time message translation
adjust_formality - AI-powered formality adjustment
on_message_created - Push notification trigger
on_user_profile_updated - Display name propagation

Running the App

Check Available Devices

flutter devices

Run on Specific Device

# Run on iOS simulator
flutter run -d iPhone

# Run on Android emulator
flutter run -d emulator-5554

# Run on physical device (connected via USB)
flutter run -d <device-id>

# Run in release mode
flutter run --release

Hot Reload

While the app is running:

Press r in terminal for hot reload (quick UI updates)
Press R in terminal for hot restart (full app restart)
Press q to quit

Launch iOS Simulator

open -a Simulator

# Or use Flutter
flutter emulators --launch apple_ios_simulator

Launch Android Emulator

# List available emulators
flutter emulators

# Launch specific emulator
flutter emulators --launch <emulator-id>

Building for Production

iOS Build

1. Configure Xcode Project

Open ios/Runner.xcworkspace in Xcode:

open ios/Runner.xcworkspace

Configure:

Bundle Identifier
Team (Apple Developer account)
Signing certificates

2. Build IPA

# Build for App Store
flutter build ipa --release

# Output: build/ios/ipa/message_ai.ipa

3. Upload to App Store

Use Xcode or Transporter app to upload the IPA to App Store Connect.

Android Build

1. Configure Signing

Create android/key.properties:

storePassword=<your-store-password>
keyPassword=<your-key-password>
keyAlias=<your-key-alias>
storeFile=<path-to-keystore-file>

2. Generate Keystore (first time only)

keytool -genkey -v -keystore ~/upload-keystore.jks \
  -keyalg RSA -keysize 2048 -validity 10000 \
  -alias upload

3. Build APK

# Build release APK
flutter build apk --release

# Output: build/app/outputs/flutter-apk/app-release.apk

4. Build App Bundle (recommended for Play Store)

# Build release app bundle
flutter build appbundle --release

# Output: build/app/outputs/bundle/release/app-release.aab

5. Upload to Play Store

Upload the .aab file to Google Play Console.

Build for Web

flutter build web --release

# Output: build/web/

Deploy to Firebase Hosting:

firebase deploy --only hosting

Project Structure

lib/
├── core/                           # Shared infrastructure
│   ├── database/                  # Drift database setup, DAOs
│   │   ├── app_database.dart     # Main database class
│   │   └── daos/                 # Data Access Objects
│   ├── error/                    # Failure classes
│   ├── network/                  # Connectivity checking
│   └── providers/                # Core Riverpod providers
│
├── features/                      # Feature modules (Clean Architecture)
│   ├── authentication/
│   │   ├── data/                # Data sources, models, repositories
│   │   ├── domain/              # Entities, repository interfaces, use cases
│   │   └── presentation/        # Pages, widgets, providers
│   │
│   ├── messaging/
│   │   ├── data/
│   │   │   ├── datasources/    # Firestore & Drift data sources
│   │   │   ├── models/         # DTOs for serialization
│   │   │   ├── repositories/   # Repository implementations
│   │   │   └── services/       # Presence, typing, sync services
│   │   ├── domain/
│   │   │   ├── entities/       # Message, Conversation entities
│   │   │   ├── repositories/   # Repository interfaces
│   │   │   └── usecases/       # Business logic
│   │   └── presentation/
│   │       ├── pages/          # Chat screens
│   │       ├── providers/      # State management
│   │       └── widgets/        # Reusable components
│   │
│   ├── translation/             # Translation feature
│   └── formality_adjustment/    # Formality adjustment feature
│
├── config/                       # App-wide configuration
│   ├── routes/                  # Navigation setup
│   └── theme/                   # Theming
│
└── main.dart                    # App entry point

functions/                        # Firebase Cloud Functions (Python)
├── main.py                      # Function definitions
└── requirements.txt             # Python dependencies

firestore.rules                  # Firestore security rules
database.rules.json              # Realtime Database security rules

Development Workflow

Code Generation

Run code generation whenever you modify:

# One-time build
dart run build_runner build --delete-conflicting-outputs

# Watch mode (auto-rebuild on changes)
dart run build_runner watch --delete-conflicting-outputs

Code Analysis

# Analyze Dart code for issues
dart analyze

# Auto-fix issues
dart fix --apply

# Format code
dart format lib/

Adding a New Feature

Create feature directory under lib/features/
Define domain layer:
- Entities (business objects)
- Repository interfaces
- Use cases (business logic)
Implement data layer:
- Models (DTOs)
- Data sources (Firestore, Drift)
- Repository implementations
Build presentation layer:
- Pages (screens)
- Widgets (UI components)
- Providers (state management)

Run code generation:

dart run build_runner build --delete-conflicting-outputs

Test manually (this project does not use automated tests)

State Management with Riverpod

All providers use code generation:

import 'package:riverpod_annotation/riverpod_annotation.dart';

part 'my_providers.g.dart';  // Generated file

@riverpod
MyService myService(Ref ref) {
  return MyService(ref.watch(dependencyProvider));
}

After modifying providers, run build_runner.

Database Changes with Drift

When modifying database tables:

Update table definitions in lib/core/database/
Run code generation
Handle migrations in app_database.dart
Test with app restart (hot reload won't work)

Cloud Functions

Local Testing

# Install Firebase emulator suite
firebase init emulators

# Start emulators
firebase emulators:start

Configure Flutter app to use emulators (development only):

// In main.dart
if (kDebugMode) {
  FirebaseFunctions.instance.useFunctionsEmulator('localhost', 5001);
}

Deploying Functions

# Deploy all functions
firebase deploy --only functions

# Deploy specific function
firebase deploy --only functions:translate_message

# View logs
firebase functions:log

Function Environment Variables

Functions use Firebase Secret Manager:

# List secrets
firebase functions:secrets:access TRANSLATION_API_KEY_SECRET

# Update secret
firebase functions:secrets:set TRANSLATION_API_KEY_SECRET

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

Build runner errors:

# Clean generated files and rebuild
dart run build_runner clean
dart run build_runner build --delete-conflicting-outputs

Hot reload not working:

Use hot restart (press R in terminal)
Provider structure changes require full restart
Database schema changes require app reinstall

Firebase connection issues:

# Reconfigure Firebase
flutterfire configure

# Check Firebase initialization in main.dart

iOS build errors:

# Clean iOS build
cd ios
rm -rf Pods Podfile.lock
pod install
cd ..
flutter clean
flutter pub get

Android build errors:

# Clean Android build
cd android
./gradlew clean
cd ..
flutter clean
flutter pub get

Drift database errors:

Delete app and reinstall (clears local database)
Check migration logic in app_database.dart
Verify table definitions have correct syntax: text()()

Provider errors:

# Regenerate provider files
dart run build_runner build --delete-conflicting-outputs

# Check for circular dependencies
# Verify all providers have proper @riverpod annotation

Getting Help

Firebase: Firebase Documentation
Flutter: Flutter Documentation
Riverpod: Riverpod Documentation
Drift: Drift Documentation

Debug Logging

Enable verbose logging:

# Run with verbose output
flutter run -v

# View device logs (iOS)
flutter logs

# View device logs (Android)
adb logcat

Contributing

Fork the repository
Create a feature branch (git checkout -b feature/amazing-feature)
Commit your changes (git commit -m 'Add amazing feature')
Push to the branch (git push origin feature/amazing-feature)
Open a Pull Request

Note: This project does not use automated testing. All changes should be manually tested.

License

[Add your license here]

Acknowledgments

Flutter team for the amazing framework
Firebase for backend services
Riverpod for state management
ML Kit for on-device language detection
OpenAI for GPT-4o-mini API

Name		Name	Last commit message	Last commit date
Latest commit History 271 Commits
.scripts		.scripts
.vscode		.vscode
android		android
docs		docs
firebase		firebase
functions		functions
ios		ios
lib		lib
web		web
.firebaserc		.firebaserc
.gitignore		.gitignore
.metadata		.metadata
Persona_Brainlift.md		Persona_Brainlift.md
README.md		README.md
analysis_options.yaml		analysis_options.yaml
database.rules.json		database.rules.json
dev.xctestplan		dev.xctestplan
firebase.json		firebase.json
firestore.indexes.json		firestore.indexes.json
firestore.rules		firestore.rules
pubspec.lock		pubspec.lock
pubspec.yaml		pubspec.yaml

Folders and files

Latest commit

History

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MessageAI

Table of Contents

Features

Core Messaging

AI-Powered Features

Technical Highlights

Prerequisites

Required Software

Required Accounts

Installation

1. Clone the Repository

2. Install Flutter Dependencies

3. Run Code Generation

4. Install iOS Dependencies (iOS only)

Firebase Setup

1. Create Firebase Project

2. Configure Firebase for Flutter

3. Enable Firebase Services

4. Deploy Security Rules

5. Setup Cloud Functions

Running the App

Check Available Devices

Run on Specific Device

Hot Reload

Launch iOS Simulator

Launch Android Emulator

Building for Production

iOS Build

Android Build

Build for Web

Project Structure

Development Workflow

Code Generation

Code Analysis

Adding a New Feature

State Management with Riverpod

Database Changes with Drift

Cloud Functions

Local Testing

Deploying Functions

Function Environment Variables

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

Getting Help

Debug Logging

Contributing

License

Acknowledgments

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