Build a Discord Bot That Checks Messages for AI-Generated Text (discord.js v14)

Community managers are seeing more AI-generated posts: bot-like "introductions", copy-pasted answers in help channels, and contest entries that read suspiciously polished.

In this tutorial we'll build a small Discord bot with discord.js v14 that lets moderators right-click any message and choose "Check for AI". The bot replies privately (only the moderator sees it) with an AI-likelihood score.

We deliberately don't auto-scan every message or auto-delete anything. More on why at the end.

What you'll need

• Node.js 20.6+ (for the built-in --env-file flag)
• A Discord application and bot token from the Developer Portal
• An AI detection API key (we use ProofAI's, but any detector with a probability score works)

mkdir ai-check-bot && cd ai-check-bot
npm init -y
npm pkg set type=module   # we use ES modules and top-level await
npm install discord.js

# .env (never commit this)
DISCORD_TOKEN=your-bot-token
DISCORD_CLIENT_ID=your-application-id
PROOFAI_API_KEY=sk_live_...
PROOFAI_ORIGIN=https://yourapp.com

Step 1: Register a message context-menu command

Context-menu commands appear when you right-click a message → Apps. No slash command typing, and no need for the privileged Message Content intent, because Discord passes the target message to your bot when a moderator uses the command.

// register.js
import { REST, Routes, ContextMenuCommandBuilder, ApplicationCommandType, PermissionFlagsBits } from "discord.js";

const command = new ContextMenuCommandBuilder()
  .setName("Check for AI")
  .setType(ApplicationCommandType.Message)
  .setDefaultMemberPermissions(PermissionFlagsBits.ManageMessages); // moderators only by default

const rest = new REST().setToken(process.env.DISCORD_TOKEN);
await rest.put(Routes.applicationCommands(process.env.DISCORD_CLIENT_ID), { body: [command.toJSON()] });
console.log("Registered 'Check for AI'");

Run it once:

node --env-file=.env register.js

Step 2: The detection helper

// detect.js
const API_URL = "https://ai.proofai.in/api/v1/detect";

export async function detectAI(text) {
  const words = text.trim().split(/\s+/).filter(Boolean).length;
  if (words < 50) return { status: "too_short", words };

  const res = await fetch(API_URL, {
    method: "POST",
    headers: {
      "x-api-key": process.env.PROOFAI_API_KEY,
      "Origin": process.env.PROOFAI_ORIGIN,
      "Content-Type": "application/x-www-form-urlencoded",
    },
    body: new URLSearchParams({ content: text }),
  });

  if (res.status === 429) return { status: "rate_limited" };
  if (!res.ok) return { status: "error" };
  const data = await res.json();
  return { status: "ok", p: data.ai_probability };
}

Short Discord messages ("lol same", "thanks!") can't be scored meaningfully, so we refuse anything under 50 words instead of returning a misleading number.

Step 3: The bot

// bot.js
import { Client, Events, GatewayIntentBits, MessageFlags } from "discord.js";
import { detectAI } from "./detect.js";

const client = new Client({ intents: [GatewayIntentBits.Guilds] });

client.once(Events.ClientReady, (c) => console.log(`Logged in as ${c.user.tag}`));

client.on(Events.InteractionCreate, async (interaction) => {
  if (!interaction.isMessageContextMenuCommand()) return;
  if (interaction.commandName !== "Check for AI") return;

  // Detection can take a few seconds, so acknowledge first (privately)
  await interaction.deferReply({ flags: MessageFlags.Ephemeral });

  const text = interaction.targetMessage.content ?? "";
  const result = await detectAI(text);

  let reply;
  if (result.status === "too_short") {
    reply = `This message has only ${result.words} words. Detection needs at least 50 words to be meaningful.`;
  } else if (result.status === "rate_limited") {
    reply = "Daily detection limit reached. Try again later.";
  } else if (result.status !== "ok") {
    reply = "Couldn't check this message right now.";
  } else {
    const level = result.p >= 85 ? "High" : result.p >= 60 ? "Medium" : "Low";
    reply = `**${level} likelihood of AI-generated text** (${result.p}%).\n` +
            `Treat this as one signal, not proof. Talk to the member before taking action.`;
  }

  await interaction.editReply(reply);
});

client.login(process.env.DISCORD_TOKEN);

node --env-file=.env bot.js

Invite the bot with the applications.commands and bot scopes, then right-click a long message → Apps → Check for AI.

Why the reply is ephemeral

MessageFlags.Ephemeral means only the moderator who ran the command sees the result. Posting "this person used AI!" publicly, based on a probability, is a fast way to embarrass a real member and lose trust in your mod team.

Things we deliberately didn't build

• Auto-scanning every message. It needs the privileged Message Content intent, burns your API quota on small talk, and creates a feeling of surveillance.
• Auto-delete or auto-ban. Detectors make mistakes. False positives are more common for non-native English writers and very formal writing.
• Public "AI" badges. Same reason.

Good uses: checking contest submissions, long "introductions" from brand-new accounts that look spammy, or answers copy-pasted into help channels.

Ideas to extend it

• Log checks to a private #mod-log channel for transparency within the mod team
• Add a per-moderator cooldown so nobody burns the quota
• Support attachments (PDF/DOCX) using the extraction code from our batch-scanning post

Full API reference: ProofAI API docs · Try the free web detector.

Do you moderate a community? How are you handling AI-generated posts? Tell us in the comments. 👇

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Disclosure: we're the team behind ProofAI at 4Born Solutions. This article was drafted with AI assistance and reviewed and edited by our team.