This project uses X/Twitter’s undocumented web GraphQL API through twitter safe relay. X can change endpoints, query IDs, and anti-bot behavior at any time — expect this to break without notice.

Install

npm install -g @yuta/bird
# or
pnpm add -g @yuta/bird
# or
bun add -g @yuta/bird

# one-shot (no install)
bunx @yuta/bird whoami

Gitea Packages:

npm config set @yuta:registry=https://git.yutakobayashi.com/api/packages/yuta/npm/
npm install -g @yuta/bird

Nix flakes:

nix run git+https://git.yutakobayashi.com/yuta/bird -- --help

Homebrew (macOS, prebuilt Bun binary):

brew install steipete/tap/bird

Quickstart

# Point bird at your running twitter safe relay
export TWITTER_RELAY_BASE_URL=http://localhost:6900

# Show the logged-in account
bird whoami

# Discover command help
bird help whoami

# Read a tweet (URL or ID)
bird read https://x.com/user/status/1234567890123456789
bird 1234567890123456789 --json

# Thread + replies
bird thread https://x.com/user/status/1234567890123456789
bird replies 1234567890123456789
bird replies 1234567890123456789 --max-pages 3 --json
bird thread 1234567890123456789 --max-pages 3 --json

# Search + mentions
bird search "from:steipete" -n 5
bird mentions -n 5
bird mentions --user @steipete -n 5

# User tweets (profile timeline)
bird user-tweets @steipete -n 20
bird user-tweets @steipete -n 50 --json

# Bookmarks
bird bookmarks -n 5
bird bookmarks --folder-id 123456789123456789 -n 5 # https://x.com/i/bookmarks/<folder-id>
bird bookmarks --all --json
bird bookmarks --all --max-pages 2 --json
bird unbookmark 1234567890123456789
bird unbookmark https://x.com/user/status/1234567890123456789

# Likes
bird likes -n 5

# News and trending topics (AI-curated from Explore tabs)
bird news --ai-only -n 10
bird news --sports -n 5

# Lists
bird list-timeline 1234567890 -n 20
bird list-timeline https://x.com/i/lists/1234567890 --all --json
bird list-timeline 1234567890 --max-pages 3 --json

# Following (who you follow)
bird following -n 20
bird following --user 12345678 -n 10  # by user ID

# Followers (who follows you)
bird followers -n 20
bird followers --user 12345678 -n 10  # by user ID

# Refresh GraphQL query IDs cache (no rebuild)
bird query-ids --fresh

Fetch AI-curated news and trending topics from X's Explore page tabs:

# Fetch 10 news items from all tabs (default: For You, News, Sports, Entertainment)
bird news -n 10

# Fetch only AI-curated news (filters out regular trends)
bird news --ai-only -n 20

# Fetch from specific tabs
bird news --news-only --ai-only -n 10
bird news --sports -n 15
bird news --entertainment --ai-only -n 5

# Include related tweets for each news item
bird news --with-tweets --tweets-per-item 3 -n 10

# Combine multiple tab filters
bird news --sports --entertainment -n 20

# JSON output
bird news --json -n 5
bird news --json-full --ai-only -n 10  # includes raw API response

Tab options (can be combined):

--for-you — Fetch from For You tab only
--news-only — Fetch from News tab only
--sports — Fetch from Sports tab only
--entertainment — Fetch from Entertainment tab only
--trending-only — Fetch from Trending tab only

By default, the command fetches from For You, News, Sports, and Entertainment tabs (Trending excluded to reduce noise). Headlines are automatically deduplicated across tabs.

Library

bird can be used as a library (same GraphQL client as the CLI):

import { TwitterClient } from '@yuta/bird';

const client = new TwitterClient({
  relayBaseUrl: process.env.TWITTER_RELAY_BASE_URL
});

// Search for tweets
const searchResult = await client.search('from:steipete', 50);

// Fetch news and trending topics from all tabs (default: For You, News, Sports, Entertainment)
const newsResult = await client.getNews(10, { aiOnly: true });

// Fetch from specific tabs with related tweets
const sportsNews = await client.getNews(10, {
  aiOnly: true,
  withTweets: true,
  tabs: ['sports', 'entertainment']
});

Commands

bird tweet "<text>" — post a new tweet.
bird reply <tweet-id-or-url> "<text>" — reply to a tweet using its ID or URL.
bird help [command] — show help (or help for a subcommand).
bird query-ids [--fresh] [--json] — inspect or refresh cached GraphQL query IDs.
bird read <tweet-id-or-url> [--json] — fetch tweet content as text or JSON.
bird <tweet-id-or-url> [--json] — shorthand for read when only a URL or ID is provided.
bird replies <tweet-id-or-url> [--all] [--max-pages n] [--cursor string] [--delay ms] [--json] — list replies to a tweet.
bird thread <tweet-id-or-url> [--all] [--max-pages n] [--cursor string] [--delay ms] [--json] — show the full conversation thread.
bird search "<query>" [-n count] [--all] [--max-pages n] [--cursor string] [--json] — search for tweets matching a query; --max-pages requires --all or --cursor.
bird mentions [-n count] [--user @handle] [--json] — find tweets mentioning a user (defaults to the authenticated user).
bird user-tweets <@handle> [-n count] [--cursor string] [--max-pages n] [--delay ms] [--json] — get tweets from a user's profile timeline.
bird bookmarks [-n count] [--folder-id id] [--all] [--max-pages n] [--json] — list your bookmarked tweets (or a specific bookmark folder); --max-pages requires --all.
bird unbookmark <tweet-id-or-url...> — remove one or more bookmarks by tweet ID or URL.
bird likes [-n count] [--json] — list your liked tweets.
bird news [-n count] [--ai-only] [--with-tweets] [--tweets-per-item n] [--for-you] [--news-only] [--sports] [--entertainment] [--trending-only] [--json] — fetch news and trending topics from X's Explore tabs.
bird trending — alias for news command.
bird list-timeline <list-id-or-url> [-n count] [--all] [--max-pages n] [--cursor string] [--json] — get tweets from a list timeline; --max-pages implies --all.
bird following [--user <userId>] [-n count] [--json] — list users that you (or another user) follow.
bird followers [--user <userId>] [-n count] [--json] — list users that follow you (or another user).
bird whoami — print which Twitter account your relay belongs to.
bird check — verify relay configuration and account access.
bird likes [-n count] [--json] — list your liked tweets.
bird news [-n count] [--ai-only] [--with-tweets] [--tweets-per-item n] [--for-you] [--news-only] [--sports] [--entertainment] [--trending-only] [--json] — fetch news and trending topics from X's Explore tabs (fetches from For You, News, Sports, and Entertainment tabs by default).
bird trending — alias for news command.
bird list-timeline <list-id-or-url> [-n count] [--all] [--max-pages n] [--cursor string] [--json] — get tweets from a list timeline; --max-pages implies --all.
bird following [--user <userId>] [-n count] [--json] — list users that you (or another user) follow.
bird followers [--user <userId>] [-n count] [--json] — list users that follow you (or another user).
bird whoami — print which Twitter account your relay belongs to.
bird check — verify relay configuration and account access.

Global options:

--relay-base-url <url>: twitter safe relay base URL (defaults to TWITTER_RELAY_BASE_URL).
--timeout <ms>: abort requests after the given timeout (milliseconds).
--quote-depth <n>: max quoted tweet depth in JSON output (default: 1; 0 disables).
--plain: stable output (no emoji, no color).
--no-emoji: disable emoji output.
--no-color: disable ANSI colors (or set NO_COLOR=1).
--media <path>: attach media file (repeatable, up to 4 images or 1 video).
--alt <text>: alt text for the corresponding --media (repeatable).

Authentication (GraphQL)

bird does not handle Twitter authentication locally. It sends Twitter API-compatible requests to twitter safe relay, and the relay handles authentication.

Write operations:

tweet/reply primarily use GraphQL (CreateTweet).
If GraphQL returns error 226 (“automated request”), bird falls back to the legacy statuses/update.json endpoint.

Configure the relay URL with TWITTER_RELAY_BASE_URL or --relay-base-url.

Config (JSON5)

Config precedence: CLI flags > env vars > project config > global config.

Global: ~/.config/bird/config.json5
Project: ./.birdrc.json5

Example ~/.config/bird/config.json5:

{
  relayBaseUrl: "http://localhost:6900",
  timeoutMs: 20000,
  quoteDepth: 1
}

Environment shortcuts:

TWITTER_RELAY_BASE_URL
BIRD_TIMEOUT_MS
BIRD_QUOTE_DEPTH

Output

--json prints raw tweet objects for read/replies/thread/search/mentions/user-tweets/bookmarks/likes.
When using --json with pagination (--all, --cursor, --max-pages, or for user-tweets when -n > 20), output is { tweets, nextCursor }.
read returns full text for Notes and Articles when present.
Use --plain for stable, script-friendly output (no emoji, no color).

JSON Schema

When using --json, tweet objects include:

Field	Type	Description
`id`	string	Tweet ID
`text`	string	Full tweet text (includes Note/Article content when present)
`author`	object	`{ username, name }`
`authorId`	string?	Author's user ID
`createdAt`	string	Timestamp
`replyCount`	number	Number of replies
`retweetCount`	number	Number of retweets
`likeCount`	number	Number of likes
`conversationId`	string	Thread conversation ID
`inReplyToStatusId`	string?	Parent tweet ID (present if this is a reply)
`quotedTweet`	object?	Embedded quote tweet (same schema; depth controlled by `--quote-depth`)

When using --json with following/followers, user objects include:

Field	Type	Description
`id`	string	User ID
`username`	string	Username/handle
`name`	string	Display name
`description`	string?	User bio
`followersCount`	number?	Followers count
`followingCount`	number?	Following count
`isBlueVerified`	boolean?	Blue verified flag
`profileImageUrl`	string?	Profile image URL
`createdAt`	string?	Account creation timestamp

When using --json with news/trending, news objects include:

Field	Type	Description
`id`	string	Unique identifier for the news item
`headline`	string	News headline or trend title
`category`	string?	Category (e.g., "AI · Technology", "Trending", "News")
`timeAgo`	string?	Relative time (e.g., "2h ago")
`postCount`	number?	Number of posts
`description`	string?	Item description
`url`	string?	URL to the trend or news article
`tweets`	array?	Related tweets (only when `--with-tweets` is used)
`_raw`	object?	Raw API response (only when `--json-full` is used)

Query IDs (GraphQL)

X rotates GraphQL “query IDs” frequently. Each GraphQL operation is addressed as:

operationName (e.g. TweetDetail, CreateTweet)
queryId (rotating ID baked into X’s web client bundles)

bird ships with a baseline mapping in src/lib/query-ids.json (copied into dist/ on build). At runtime, it can refresh that mapping by scraping X’s public web client bundles and caching the result on disk.

Runtime cache:

Default path: ~/.config/bird/query-ids-cache.json
Override path: BIRD_QUERY_IDS_CACHE=/path/to/file.json
TTL: 24h (stale cache is still used, but marked “not fresh”)

Auto-recovery:

On GraphQL 404 (query ID invalid), bird forces a refresh once and retries.
For TweetDetail/SearchTimeline, bird also rotates through a small set of known fallback IDs to reduce breakage while refreshing.

Refresh on demand:

bird query-ids --fresh

Exit codes:

0: success
1: runtime error (network/auth/etc)
2: invalid usage/validation (e.g. bad --user handle)

Version

bird --version prints package.json version plus current git sha when available, e.g. 0.3.0 (3df7969b).

Media uploads

Attach media with --media (repeatable) and optional --alt per item.
Up to 4 images/GIFs, or 1 video (no mixing). Supported: jpg, jpeg, png, webp, gif, mp4, mov.
Images/GIFs + 1 video supported (uploads via Twitter legacy upload endpoint through the relay; video may take longer to process).

Example:

bird tweet "hi" --media img.png --alt "desc"

Development

cd ~/Projects/bird
pnpm install
pnpm run build       # dist/ + bun binary
pnpm run build:dist  # dist/ only
pnpm run build:binary
nix build .#bird
nix run .# -- --help

pnpm run dev tweet "Test"
pnpm run dev -- --plain check
pnpm test
pnpm run lint

Notes

GraphQL uses internal X endpoints and can be rate limited (429).
Query IDs rotate; refresh at runtime with bird query-ids --fresh (or update the baked baseline via pnpm run graphql:update).

README.md Unescape Escape

bird 🐦 — fast X CLI for tweeting, replying, and reading

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