Telegram group bots: what they do and how to add one
Which bots a Telegram group can use: moderation, screening newcomers, games and Stars giveaways. How to add a bot and give it admin rights, what the Iris bot is, and why a bot stays silent.
A group bot is a program that works right inside a chat: it keeps order, screens newcomers, keeps statistics, runs games or hands out Stars. To use one, add it to the group and, if it has to read members' messages, make it an administrator. Below: how to do that, what the Iris bot is, and how to run Stars giveaways in a chat.
What bots do in groups
Telegram itself describes bots as small programs that run inside Telegram, made by outside developers with the Bot API (Telegram FAQ). In groups you most often meet these jobs:
- Moderation. Warnings, mutes, bans, moderator ranks.
- Screening newcomers. In its June 2026 update Telegram wrote that a bot can be added as an administrator to process join requests, and that it can open a mini app to vet applicants (Telegram blog).
- Ratings, games and statistics. Member reputation, duels, activity counters.
- Stars giveaways and transfers. This is what the Shiba Bank bot does — more on it below.
The fewer bots in a group, the fewer programs that can read the conversation.
How to add a bot to a group
- Find the bot by its @username in Telegram search and add it to the group as a member. If the developer has an "add to group" link, Telegram lets you pick the group yourself (bot links documentation).
- Open the group info → "Edit" → "Administrators", add the bot and switch on the rights it needs. The same route for giving someone admin rights is described in the Telegram FAQ.
More about the group itself: how to create a group on Telegram.
Why a bot needs admin rights
This is how Telegram built it: by default a bot sees only the messages meant for it — commands addressed to it and replies to its messages. A bot that is an administrator receives all messages of the group (Telegram documentation). A developer can also switch this mode off for a bot, and then it sees all messages as well. In the member list Telegram shows a note next to the bot's name saying whether it has access to messages.
So a bot that reacts to ordinary text in the chat, not just to "/" commands, needs admin rights or the privacy mode switched off by its developer. Separate rights such as deleting messages and banning members are needed only by bots that moderate.
A bot that sees everything reads the whole conversation of the group. Telegram advises against adding bots you do not fully trust to a group with sensitive information. Give a bot only the rights its work needs.
The Iris bot
Iris is a ready-made chat manager, "Iris | Чат-менеджер", from third-party developers. According to its developers' official documentation, it offers moderation (warnings, mutes, bans), ratings and reputation, games and statistics, and it works with group admin rights. The commands and the first setup are described in Iris's documentation, and its support chat is @iris_cm_chat. Shiba Bank is not affiliated with this bot.
Iris is not something you "make" — you connect it: add it to the group and give it rights as in the steps above. For a bot of your own, read how to create a Telegram bot.
Stars giveaways in a chat: the Shiba Bank bot
@barboskich_stars_bot hands out Stars to group members with commands in the chat. The Stars are taken from your wallet in the bot ("👛 Wallet").
+boom 100— 100 Stars go to random active members.+boom react 100 20— 100 Stars for 20 places; members join with a button on the card.+send 10 stars— as a reply to a message: 10 Stars to that member./stars— who gave how much in this chat.
Make the bot an administrator: the rights to delete messages and ban are not needed. Without admin rights Telegram shows the bot only "/" commands, so it does not see +boom and +send. If you add the bot without rights, it writes in the chat that it needs them and lists its commands. The chat's settings open in a private chat with the bot: "👛 Wallet" → "🔥 Chat drops" → "⚙️ My chats".
Buttons and links the bot publishes in the chat carry the referral mark of whoever added the bot: anyone who opens the bot from the chat for the first time becomes their referral. How that works: referral links on Telegram.
The full instructions: Stars drops in chats and the page for chats.
Frequently asked questions
What is the Iris bot on Telegram?
It is a ready-made chat manager, "Iris | Чат-менеджер" (@iris_cm_bot), from third-party developers: moderation, member ratings, games and statistics. It needs admin rights in the group.
How do I make an Iris bot on Telegram?
You do not need to make it: add @iris_cm_bot to your group, give it admin rights and follow Iris's documentation. A bot of your own is created separately, through @BotFather.
How do I add a bot to a Telegram group?
Find the bot by its @username, add it to the group as a member, then open "Edit" → "Administrators" in the group info and give it rights.
Why is a bot silent in my group?
Most often it has no admin rights: without them it sees only commands addressed to it and replies to its own messages, and ordinary text is invisible to it.
Does a bot need admin rights?
If the bot has to react to ordinary messages in the chat — yes. Rights to delete messages and ban are for moderation bots only.
How do I give out Stars in a chat?
Add the Shiba Bank bot, make it an administrator, top up the wallet in the bot and send +boom 100 to the group.
