New Button Brings Slack Into the Physical World

SlackAlert is Slack-integrated hardware that allows for physical interactions with the popular collaboration tool. Built by interactive agency Viget, the solution provides a simple way to send and receive digital messages sans screen.

Originating from the hardware team behind this year’s Kentucky Derby Social Brooch, SlackAlert was initially created to solve a one-time office challenge but evolved to become a completely customizable hardware solution for Slack users. In order to share SlackAlert with a wide audience, the project is open-source from its hardware components to the internal software.

SlackAlert’s physical button takes advantage of the powerful Particle Photon kit to relay messages. The casing and mount are 3D-printed using translucent and opaque ABS filament. The software runs on the Screenless framework, also developed by Viget, which connects the circuit board and web application that ultimately integrates with Slack. From there, users can choose which organization and individual room to connect to SlackAlert.

Want to see how it works? Watch below!