From 9abfd08529360785f49f77bd40452414bb432305 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
From: Rob Colbert <rob@digitaltelepresence.com>
Date: Fri, 8 May 2026 13:07:39 -0400
Subject: [PATCH] integrated new `persona` field in User

User Settings will enable User to enter a Persona, or a description of
the User, to be included in the system prompt. This helps calibrate the
agent to better assist the User, and work with the User in ways that
work best for each individual User of the system.
---
 gadget-code/src/models/user.ts           |  1 +
 gadget-code/src/services/chat-session.ts | 39 +++++++++++++++++++++++-
 packages/api/src/interfaces/user.ts      |  1 +
 3 files changed, 40 insertions(+), 1 deletion(-)

diff --git a/gadget-code/src/models/user.ts b/gadget-code/src/models/user.ts
index 98c14df..ef8c061 100644
--- a/gadget-code/src/models/user.ts
+++ b/gadget-code/src/models/user.ts
@@ -25,6 +25,7 @@ export const UserSchema = new Schema<IUser>({
   password: { type: String, required: true, select: false },
   displayName: { type: String, minlength: 3, maxlength: 30, required: true },
   flags: { type: UserFlagsSchema, required: true },
+  persona: { type: String },
 });
 
 export const User = model<IUser>("User", UserSchema);
diff --git a/gadget-code/src/services/chat-session.ts b/gadget-code/src/services/chat-session.ts
index 584aef3..bee0e81 100644
--- a/gadget-code/src/services/chat-session.ts
+++ b/gadget-code/src/services/chat-session.ts
@@ -6,6 +6,7 @@ import env from "../config/env.js";
 
 import path from "node:path";
 import fs from "node:fs";
+import dayjs from "dayjs";
 
 import {
   IChatSession,
@@ -24,6 +25,7 @@ import ChatSession from "../models/chat-session.js";
 import ChatTurn from "../models/chat-turn.js";
 import Project from "../models/project.js";
 import AiProvider from "../models/ai-provider.js";
+import { IAiProvider } from "@gadget/api";
 
 class ChatSessionService extends DtpService {
   private populateSession: PopulateOptions[] = [
@@ -279,6 +281,12 @@ class ChatSessionService extends DtpService {
   }
 
   async buildSystemPrompt(session: IChatSession): Promise<string> {
+    const TIMESTAMP_FORMAT = "YYYY-MM-DD hh:mm a";
+
+    const user = session.user as IUser;
+    const provider = session.provider as IAiProvider;
+    const project = session.project as IProject;
+
     const commonDir = path.join(env.installDir, "data", "prompts", "common");
     const promptsDir = path.join(
       env.installDir,
@@ -299,6 +307,33 @@ class ChatSessionService extends DtpService {
       ),
     };
 
+    /*
+     * User Persona
+     */
+    const personaBlock = [
+      `USER ID: ${user._id}`,
+      `NAME: ${user.displayName}`,
+      `IS ADMIN: ${user.flags.isAdmin ? "YES" : "NO"}`,
+      `---[BEGIN PERSONA]---`,
+      user.persona ||
+        "I haven't set a persona. Encourage me to visit Settings and describe myself!",
+      `---[END PERSONA]---`,
+    ].join("\n");
+
+    /*
+     * Session Information
+     */
+    const sessionBlock = [
+      `Session ID: ${session._id}`,
+      `Session Name: ${session.name}`,
+      `Session Created At: ${dayjs(session.createdAt).format(TIMESTAMP_FORMAT)}`,
+      `AI Provider: ${provider.name}`,
+      `AI API: ${provider.apiType}`,
+      `Large Language Model: ${session.selectedModel}`,
+      `Project Name: ${project.name}`,
+      `Project Created At: ${dayjs(project.createdAt).format(TIMESTAMP_FORMAT)}`,
+    ].join("\n");
+
     const templateFilename = path.join(promptsDir, "system.md");
     const promptTemplate = await fs.promises.readFile(
       templateFilename,
@@ -307,7 +342,9 @@ class ChatSessionService extends DtpService {
 
     let prompt = promptTemplate
       .replace("{{scope_block}}", common.scopeBlock)
-      .replace("{{subagent_section}}", common.subagentsBlock);
+      .replace("{{subagent_section}}", common.subagentsBlock)
+      .replace("{{session_block}}", sessionBlock)
+      .replace("{{persona_block}}", personaBlock);
 
     return prompt;
   }
diff --git a/packages/api/src/interfaces/user.ts b/packages/api/src/interfaces/user.ts
index bdf88ce..d10e028 100644
--- a/packages/api/src/interfaces/user.ts
+++ b/packages/api/src/interfaces/user.ts
@@ -20,6 +20,7 @@ export interface IUser {
   password?: string;
   displayName: string;
   flags: IUserFlags;
+  persona?: string;
 }
 
 export type UserDocument = HydratedDocument<IUser>;