diff --git a/web/chat/chat-thread-composer.react.js b/web/chat/chat-thread-composer.react.js
index 57e70bcca..9093c1035 100644
--- a/web/chat/chat-thread-composer.react.js
+++ b/web/chat/chat-thread-composer.react.js
@@ -1,211 +1,263 @@
 // @flow
 
 import classNames from 'classnames';
+import invariant from 'invariant';
 import _isEqual from 'lodash/fp/isEqual.js';
 import * as React from 'react';
 import { useDispatch } from 'react-redux';
 
+import { useModalContext } from 'lib/components/modal-provider.react.js';
 import SWMansionIcon from 'lib/components/SWMansionIcon.react.js';
+import { useLoggedInUserInfo } from 'lib/hooks/account-hooks.js';
 import { useENSNames } from 'lib/hooks/ens-cache.js';
 import { userSearchIndexForPotentialMembers } from 'lib/selectors/user-selectors.js';
 import {
   getPotentialMemberItems,
   useSearchUsers,
+  notFriendNotice,
 } from 'lib/shared/search-utils.js';
-import { threadIsPending } from 'lib/shared/thread-utils.js';
+import {
+  createPendingThread,
+  threadIsPending,
+  useExistingThreadInfoFinder,
+} from 'lib/shared/thread-utils.js';
+import { threadTypes } from 'lib/types/thread-types-enum.js';
 import type { AccountUserInfo, UserListItem } from 'lib/types/user-types.js';
 
 import css from './chat-thread-composer.css';
 import UserAvatar from '../avatars/user-avatar.react.js';
 import Button from '../components/button.react.js';
 import Label from '../components/label.react.js';
 import Search from '../components/search.react.js';
 import type { InputState } from '../input/input-state.js';
+import Alert from '../modals/alert.react.js';
 import { updateNavInfoActionType } from '../redux/action-types.js';
 import { useSelector } from '../redux/redux-utils.js';
 
 type Props = {
   +userInfoInputArray: $ReadOnlyArray<AccountUserInfo>,
   +otherUserInfos: { [id: string]: AccountUserInfo },
   +threadID: string,
   +inputState: InputState,
 };
 
 type ActiveThreadBehavior =
   | 'reset-active-thread-if-pending'
   | 'keep-active-thread';
 
 function ChatThreadComposer(props: Props): React.Node {
   const { userInfoInputArray, otherUserInfos, threadID, inputState } = props;
 
   const [usernameInputText, setUsernameInputText] = React.useState('');
 
   const dispatch = useDispatch();
   const userSearchIndex = useSelector(userSearchIndexForPotentialMembers);
 
   const userInfoInputIDs = React.useMemo(
     () => userInfoInputArray.map(userInfo => userInfo.id),
     [userInfoInputArray],
   );
 
   const serverSearchResults = useSearchUsers(usernameInputText);
 
   const userListItems = React.useMemo(
     () =>
       getPotentialMemberItems({
         text: usernameInputText,
         userInfos: otherUserInfos,
         searchIndex: userSearchIndex,
         excludeUserIDs: userInfoInputIDs,
         includeServerSearchUsers: serverSearchResults,
       }),
     [
       usernameInputText,
       otherUserInfos,
       userSearchIndex,
       userInfoInputIDs,
       serverSearchResults,
     ],
   );
 
   const userListItemsWithENSNames = useENSNames(userListItems);
 
+  const { pushModal } = useModalContext();
+  const loggedInUserInfo = useLoggedInUserInfo();
+  invariant(loggedInUserInfo, 'loggedInUserInfo should be set');
+
+  const pendingPrivateThread = React.useRef(
+    createPendingThread({
+      viewerID: loggedInUserInfo.id,
+      threadType: threadTypes.PRIVATE,
+      members: [loggedInUserInfo],
+    }),
+  );
+  const existingThreadInfoFinderForCreatingThread = useExistingThreadInfoFinder(
+    pendingPrivateThread.current,
+  );
+
   const onSelectUserFromSearch = React.useCallback(
-    (user: AccountUserInfo) => {
-      dispatch({
-        type: updateNavInfoActionType,
-        payload: {
-          selectedUserList: [...userInfoInputArray, user],
-        },
-      });
+    (userListItem: UserListItem) => {
+      const { alert, notice, disabled, ...user } = userListItem;
       setUsernameInputText('');
+      if (!alert) {
+        dispatch({
+          type: updateNavInfoActionType,
+          payload: {
+            selectedUserList: [...userInfoInputArray, user],
+          },
+        });
+      } else if (
+        notice === notFriendNotice &&
+        userInfoInputArray.length === 0
+      ) {
+        const newUserInfoInputArray = [
+          { id: userListItem.id, username: userListItem.username },
+        ];
+        const threadInfo = existingThreadInfoFinderForCreatingThread({
+          searching: true,
+          userInfoInputArray: newUserInfoInputArray,
+        });
+        dispatch({
+          type: updateNavInfoActionType,
+          payload: {
+            chatMode: 'view',
+            activeChatThreadID: threadInfo?.id,
+            pendingThread: threadInfo,
+          },
+        });
+      } else {
+        pushModal(<Alert title={alert.title}>{alert.text}</Alert>);
+      }
     },
-    [dispatch, userInfoInputArray],
+    [
+      dispatch,
+      existingThreadInfoFinderForCreatingThread,
+      pushModal,
+      userInfoInputArray,
+    ],
   );
 
   const onRemoveUserFromSelected = React.useCallback(
     (userID: string) => {
       const newSelectedUserList = userInfoInputArray.filter(
         ({ id }) => userID !== id,
       );
       if (_isEqual(userInfoInputArray)(newSelectedUserList)) {
         return;
       }
       dispatch({
         type: updateNavInfoActionType,
         payload: {
           selectedUserList: newSelectedUserList,
         },
       });
     },
     [dispatch, userInfoInputArray],
   );
 
   const userSearchResultList = React.useMemo(() => {
     if (
       !userListItemsWithENSNames.length ||
       (!usernameInputText && userInfoInputArray.length)
     ) {
       return null;
     }
 
     const userItems = userListItemsWithENSNames.map(
       (userSearchResult: UserListItem) => {
-        const { alert, notice, disabled, ...accountUserInfo } =
-          userSearchResult;
         return (
           <li key={userSearchResult.id} className={css.searchResultsItem}>
             <Button
               variant="text"
-              onClick={() => onSelectUserFromSearch(accountUserInfo)}
+              onClick={() => onSelectUserFromSearch(userSearchResult)}
               className={css.searchResultsButton}
             >
               <div className={css.userContainer}>
                 <UserAvatar size="small" userID={userSearchResult.id} />
                 <div className={css.userName}>{userSearchResult.username}</div>
               </div>
               <div className={css.userInfo}>{userSearchResult.notice}</div>
             </Button>
           </li>
         );
       },
     );
 
     return <ul className={css.searchResultsContainer}>{userItems}</ul>;
   }, [
     onSelectUserFromSearch,
     userInfoInputArray.length,
     userListItemsWithENSNames,
     usernameInputText,
   ]);
 
   const hideSearch = React.useCallback(
     (threadBehavior: ActiveThreadBehavior = 'keep-active-thread') => {
       dispatch({
         type: updateNavInfoActionType,
         payload: {
           chatMode: 'view',
           activeChatThreadID:
             threadBehavior === 'keep-active-thread' ||
             !threadIsPending(threadID)
               ? threadID
               : null,
         },
       });
     },
     [dispatch, threadID],
   );
 
   const onCloseSearch = React.useCallback(() => {
     hideSearch('reset-active-thread-if-pending');
   }, [hideSearch]);
 
   const userInfoInputArrayWithENSNames = useENSNames(userInfoInputArray);
   const tagsList = React.useMemo(() => {
     if (!userInfoInputArrayWithENSNames?.length) {
       return null;
     }
     const labels = userInfoInputArrayWithENSNames.map(user => {
       return (
         <Label key={user.id} onClose={() => onRemoveUserFromSelected(user.id)}>
           {user.username}
         </Label>
       );
     });
     return <div className={css.userSelectedTags}>{labels}</div>;
   }, [userInfoInputArrayWithENSNames, onRemoveUserFromSelected]);
 
   React.useEffect(() => {
     if (!inputState) {
       return undefined;
     }
     inputState.registerSendCallback(hideSearch);
     return () => inputState.unregisterSendCallback(hideSearch);
   }, [hideSearch, inputState]);
 
   const threadSearchContainerStyles = classNames(css.threadSearchContainer, {
     [css.fullHeight]: !userInfoInputArray.length,
   });
 
   return (
     <div className={threadSearchContainerStyles}>
       <div className={css.searchRow}>
         <div className={css.searchField}>
           <Search
             onChangeText={setUsernameInputText}
             searchText={usernameInputText}
             placeholder="Select users for chat"
             autoFocus={true}
           />
         </div>
         <Button className={css.closeSearch} onClick={onCloseSearch}>
           <SWMansionIcon size={25} icon="cross" />
         </Button>
       </div>
       {tagsList}
       {userSearchResultList}
     </div>
   );
 }
 
 export default ChatThreadComposer;