fix(ai-client): settle status to ready on a message-less terminal run

When a continuation run after a client tool call closes with a bare
RUN_FINISHED{stop} and no assistant message, the processor's onStreamEnd
never fires, so status stayed stuck at submitted. Normalize status to
ready on the terminal, non-continuing path.

Fixes #421

Author: valeriudev

.changeset/chat-client-tool-status-ready.md

@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+---
+'@tanstack/ai-client': patch
+---
+
+Fix `useChat` status getting stuck after a client tool call when the continuation run closes with a bare `RUN_FINISHED { finishReason: 'stop' }` and no assistant message. The client only sets status `ready` via the processor's `onStreamEnd`, and `StreamProcessor.finalizeStream()` emits that callback only when it has a `lastAssistantMessage`; a message-less terminal run never fired it, so status stayed at `submitted`. The client now normalizes status to `ready` on the terminal, non-continuing path. Fixes #421.

packages/ai-client/src/chat-client.ts

@@ -1073,6 +1073,13 @@ export class ChatClient<
             } catch (error) {
               console.error('Failed to continue flow after tool result:', error)
             }
+          } else if (this.status !== 'ready') {
+            // The run is fully terminal but onStreamEnd never fired because the
+            // processor had no assistant message to emit it for — e.g. a custom
+            // backend that closes a continuation with a bare RUN_FINISHED{stop}
+            // and no text (issue #421). Normalize status here; on the normal
+            // path onStreamEnd already set 'ready', so this is a no-op.
+            this.setStatus('ready')
           }
         }
       }

packages/ai-client/tests/chat-client-client-tool-status.test.ts

@@ -0,0 +1,174 @@
+import { describe, expect, it, vi } from 'vitest'
+import { ChatClient } from '../src/chat-client'
+import {
+  createMockConnectionAdapter,
+  createTextChunks,
+  createToolCallChunks,
+} from './test-utils'
+import type { ConnectConnectionAdapter } from '../src/connection-adapters'
+import type { StreamChunk } from '@tanstack/ai/client'
+
+/**
+ * Regression for https://github.com/TanStack/ai/issues/421
+ *
+ * After a client-side tool call runs, the client posts the tool result and
+ * auto-continues. A custom backend can answer that continuation run with a
+ * bare `RUN_FINISHED { finishReason: 'stop' }` and no assistant text/message.
+ * In that case the StreamProcessor's finalizeStream() has no
+ * `lastAssistantMessage` to emit `onStreamEnd` for, so `setStatus('ready')`
+ * never fires and status never settles. The issue reports this as stuck on
+ * `streaming`; the underlying stuck value is actually `submitted`, since
+ * `streaming` is only set by `onStreamStart` (which a bare `RUN_FINISHED`
+ * never triggers).
+ */
+describe('client tool call status (issue #421)', () => {
+  function createDeferred<T>() {
+    let resolve!: (value: T) => void
+    const promise = new Promise<T>((res) => {
+      resolve = res
+    })
+    return { promise, resolve }
+  }
+
+  it('settles status to ready after a client tool when the continuation run emits only RUN_FINISHED', async () => {
+    // Round 1: the server asks for a CLIENT tool call (finishReason 'tool_calls').
+    const round1Chunks = createToolCallChunks([
+      { id: 'tc-1', name: 'get_weather', arguments: '{"city":"NYC"}' },
+    ])
+    // Round 2: the custom backend (as in the issue) closes the run with only a
+    // bare RUN_FINISHED — no assistant message, no text — after receiving the
+    // client tool result.
+    const round2Chunks: Array<StreamChunk> = [
+      {
+        type: 'RUN_FINISHED',
+        runId: 'run-2',
+        threadId: 'thread-2',
+        model: 'test',
+        timestamp: Date.now(),
+        finishReason: 'stop',
+      } as StreamChunk,
+    ]
+
+    let callIndex = 0
+    const adapter: ConnectConnectionAdapter = {
+      async *connect(_messages, _data, abortSignal) {
+        callIndex++
+        const chunks = callIndex === 1 ? round1Chunks : round2Chunks
+        for (const chunk of chunks) {
+          if (abortSignal?.aborted) return
+          yield chunk
+        }
+      },
+    }
+
+    // Controlled promise so the client tool's resolution is deterministic and
+    // the test is not racy.
+    const toolGate = createDeferred<void>()
+
+    const statuses: Array<string> = []
+    const client = new ChatClient({
+      connection: adapter,
+      onStatusChange: (s) => statuses.push(s),
+      tools: [
+        {
+          __toolSide: 'client' as const,
+          name: 'get_weather',
+          description: 'Get the weather',
+          execute: async () => {
+            await toolGate.promise
+            return { temp: 72 }
+          },
+        },
+      ],
+    })
+
+    const sendPromise = client.sendMessage('What is the weather in NYC?')
+
+    // Let round 1 stream through and the client tool begin executing.
+    await vi.waitFor(() => {
+      expect(callIndex).toBe(1)
+    })
+
+    // Release the client tool; this posts the result and triggers the
+    // continuation (round 2).
+    toolGate.resolve()
+    await sendPromise
+
+    await vi.waitFor(
+      () => {
+        expect(client.getIsLoading()).toBe(false)
+        expect(callIndex).toBeGreaterThanOrEqual(2)
+      },
+      { timeout: 2000 },
+    )
+
+    // The run is fully complete (finishReason 'stop'); status must settle to
+    // 'ready', not stay stuck at 'submitted'.
+    expect(client.getStatus()).toBe('ready')
+    expect(statuses[statuses.length - 1]).toBe('ready')
+  })
+
+  it("plain text run emits onStatusChange('ready') exactly once", async () => {
+    // A normal run with an assistant message: onStreamEnd fires and sets
+    // 'ready'. The terminal normalization added for #421 is guarded on
+    // `status !== 'ready'`, so it must NOT double-emit 'ready' here.
+    const adapter = createMockConnectionAdapter({
+      chunks: createTextChunks('Hello'),
+    })
+
+    const statuses: Array<string> = []
+    const client = new ChatClient({
+      connection: adapter,
+      onStatusChange: (s) => statuses.push(s),
+    })
+
+    await client.sendMessage('Hi')
+
+    await vi.waitFor(() => {
+      expect(client.getIsLoading()).toBe(false)
+    })
+
+    expect(client.getStatus()).toBe('ready')
+    expect(statuses.filter((s) => s === 'ready').length).toBe(1)
+  })
+
+  it('sendMessage with a bare RUN_FINISHED{stop} first run (no assistant message) settles to ready', async () => {
+    // Sibling of the #421 repro on the FIRST run: the backend closes the run
+    // immediately with a bare RUN_FINISHED and no assistant message, so
+    // onStreamEnd never fires. Status must still settle to 'ready'.
+    const chunks: Array<StreamChunk> = [
+      {
+        type: 'RUN_FINISHED',
+        runId: 'run-1',
+        threadId: 'thread-1',
+        model: 'test',
+        timestamp: Date.now(),
+        finishReason: 'stop',
+      } as StreamChunk,
+    ]
+
+    const adapter: ConnectConnectionAdapter = {
+      async *connect(_messages, _data, abortSignal) {
+        for (const chunk of chunks) {
+          if (abortSignal?.aborted) return
+          yield chunk
+        }
+      },
+    }
+
+    const statuses: Array<string> = []
+    const client = new ChatClient({
+      connection: adapter,
+      onStatusChange: (s) => statuses.push(s),
+    })
+
+    await client.sendMessage('Hi')
+
+    await vi.waitFor(() => {
+      expect(client.getIsLoading()).toBe(false)
+    })
+
+    expect(client.getStatus()).toBe('ready')
+    expect(statuses[statuses.length - 1]).toBe('ready')
+  })
+})