Building an AI Therapy App with Next.js, Better Auth, and Railway

Vivek — Mon, 11 Aug 2025 16:31:42 +0000

Building an AI Therapy App with Next.js, Better Auth, and Railway

I just launched my submission for the Railway hackathon - a Next.js Better Auth + AI Template that combines modern authentication with AI-powered features. Here's how I built it and why Railway was the perfect platform for deployment.

🚀 What I Built

My template includes:

Complete authentication system with Better Auth
PostgreSQL database with Drizzle ORM
AI therapy app demo with 6 specialized therapists
HeyGen streaming avatars for lifelike conversations
Real-time chat powered by OpenRouter
Modern UI with Tailwind CSS and Radix UI

🎯 The Problem I Solved

Building authentication from scratch is tedious. Adding AI features makes it even more complex. I wanted to create a production-ready foundation that developers could:

Deploy in one click and have working auth immediately
See real AI implementation with streaming avatars
Learn modern patterns for full-stack development
Customize easily for their own projects

🛠️ Tech Stack Choices

Why Next.js 15?

App Router for modern React patterns
Turbopack for lightning-fast development
Server Actions for seamless client-server communication
Built-in optimization for production deployment

Why Better Auth over NextAuth?

// Cleaner, more performant, better DX
import { betterAuth } from "better-auth"

export const auth = betterAuth({
  database: db,
  emailAndPassword: {
    enabled: true,
    requireEmailVerification: true,
  },
  // Much simpler configuration!
})

Why Railway?

Zero-config PostgreSQL - Database provisioned automatically
Environment management - Secure variable handling
One-click deployment - Perfect for templates
Cost-effective scaling - Pay only for usage

🤖 AI Features Implementation

The standout feature is the InnerLink AI therapy demo. Here's how I built it:

1. HeyGen Streaming Avatars

import { StreamingAvatar } from '@heygen/streaming-avatar'

const avatar = new StreamingAvatar({
  apiKey: process.env.HEYGEN_API_KEY,
  avatarId: selectedTherapist.id
})

// Real-time avatar streaming with voice
await avatar.speak(responseText)

2. AI Conversation System

// Custom prompts for each therapist specialty
export function getTherapySystemPrompt(sessionData: SessionData) {
  return `You are ${selectedAvatar.name}, a warm and experienced therapist 
    specializing in ${selectedAvatar.specialty}. 

    CLIENT: Feeling ${currentMood}, focusing on ${sessionFocus}

    Provide a focused 3-minute therapy session...`
}

3. Multiple AI Therapists

I created 6 specialized therapists:

Elenora - Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
Judy - Mindfulness & Meditation
June - Workplace Wellness
Silas - Anxiety & Stress Management
Bryan - Professional Support
Wayne - Life Coaching & Goals

🏗️ Architecture Decisions

Database Schema

// Clean, extensible user schema
export const user = pgTable("user", {
  id: text("id").primaryKey(),
  name: text("name").default(""),
  email: text("email").notNull().unique(),
  emailVerified: boolean("emailVerified").notNull().default(false),
  image: text("image"),
  createdAt: timestamp("createdAt").defaultNow(),
  updatedAt: timestamp("updatedAt").defaultNow().$onUpdate(() => new Date()),
})

Session Management

// Secure session handling with Better Auth
export const session = pgTable("session", {
  id: text("id").primaryKey(),
  userId: text("userId").notNull().references(() => user.id),
  expiresAt: timestamp("expiresAt").notNull(),
  token: text("token").notNull().unique(),
  ipAddress: text("ipAddress"),
  userAgent: text("userAgent"),
})

🎨 UI/UX Design Philosophy

I focused on modern, accessible design:

Component System

// Consistent, reusable components with Radix UI
import { Button } from "@/components/ui/button"
import { Card } from "@/components/ui/card"

// Dark mode support built-in
const ThemeProvider = ({ children }) => (
  <NextThemesProvider attribute="class" defaultTheme="system">
    {children}
  </NextThemesProvider>
)

Responsive Design

Mobile-first approach with Tailwind CSS
Touch-friendly interfaces for therapy sessions
Accessibility considerations throughout

🚀 Railway Integration

Railway made deployment incredibly smooth:

1. Database Setup

# Railway automatically provisions PostgreSQL
services:
  - name: database
    type: postgresql
    variables:
      POSTGRES_DB: innerlink
      POSTGRES_USER: ${{ POSTGRES_USER }}
      POSTGRES_PASSWORD: ${{ POSTGRES_PASSWORD }}

2. Environment Variables

Railway's variable management handles:

Database connection strings
API keys for external services
Authentication secrets
Public URLs for callbacks

3. Automatic Deployments

Connected to GitHub for:

Push-to-deploy workflow
Preview deployments for pull requests
Rollback capabilities for production

📈 Performance Optimizations

Database Queries

// Optimized queries with Drizzle ORM
const users = await db.select({
  id: user.id,
  name: user.name,
  email: user.email,
}).from(user).where(eq(user.emailVerified, true))

Streaming Responses

// Real-time AI responses
export async function POST(request: Request) {
  const stream = await openrouter.chat.completions.create({
    model: "openai/gpt-4",
    messages: conversationHistory,
    stream: true,
  })

  return new StreamingTextResponse(stream)
}

🔐 Security Implementation

Authentication Security

Email verification required for all accounts
Secure session tokens with HTTP-only cookies
CSRF protection built into Better Auth
Rate limiting on authentication endpoints

Database Security

Connection encryption with SSL
Environment-based secrets (never committed to git)
User input validation with Zod schemas

📊 Results & Impact

This template provides:

⚡ Developer Experience

5-minute setup from clone to running app
Type safety throughout the entire stack
Hot reload with Turbopack development
Clear documentation and examples

🏢 Production Ready

Scalable architecture on Railway platform
Security best practices implemented
Performance optimized for real-world usage
Monitoring ready with built-in logging

🤖 AI Innovation

Real streaming avatars for engaging UX
Multiple AI providers for flexibility
Conversation memory and context handling
Customizable personalities for different use cases

🎯 Use Cases

This template is perfect for:

AI-Powered Apps

Mental health platforms
Educational assistants
Customer support bots
Virtual coaching apps

SaaS Platforms

User dashboards
Subscription management
Team collaboration tools
Analytics platforms

Learning Projects

Modern React patterns
Authentication implementation
AI integration strategies
Full-stack development

🔮 Future Enhancements

I'm planning to add:

OAuth providers (Google, GitHub, Discord)
Multi-tenant support for SaaS applications
Advanced AI features like voice recognition
Analytics dashboard for user insights
Mobile app with React Native

🤝 Community Impact

Open Source Benefits

MIT License for maximum flexibility
Clear documentation for easy contribution
Modular architecture for easy customization
Best practices for community learning

Educational Value

Real-world patterns for authentication
AI integration examples with actual APIs
Modern tooling and development practices
Production deployment strategies

🏆 Why This Deserves to Win

This template represents the future of web development:

Innovation - Combines traditional auth with cutting-edge AI
Practicality - Solves real developer pain points
Quality - Production-ready code with best practices
Community - Open source and educational value
Railway Integration - Showcases platform capabilities perfectly

🚀 Try It Now!

GitHub Repository: github.com/vivekvt/innerlink

Live Demo: InnerLink

What's Next?

I'd love to hear your feedback! Try the template, build something amazing, and let me know how it works for your use case.

Questions? Drop them in the comments below!

This project was built for the Railway hackathon. Railway's platform made deployment incredibly smooth, and I'm excited to see how the community uses this template to build the next generation of AI-powered applications.

DEV Community: Vivek

Building an AI Therapy App with Next.js, Better Auth, and Railway