# External Store API Reference
URL: /docs/api-reference/external-store

External store runtime, message conversion helpers, and adapters for assistant-ui React apps that own their chat state outside the runtime.

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External store APIs are for applications that already have their own message, thread, or persistence model. They let assistant-ui render and control that state without forcing the app to adopt the built-in runtime storage shape.

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## Pages \[#pages]

<Cards>
  <Card title="&#x22;Message Conversion&#x22;" href="&#x22;/docs/api-reference/external-store/message-conversion&#x22;">
    {"Convert external message formats into assistant-ui's message and thread state for the external store runtime."}
  </Card>

  <Card title="&#x22;External Store Runtime&#x22;" href="&#x22;/docs/api-reference/external-store/runtime&#x22;">
    {"Runtime components, options, and adapters for using assistant-ui with externally owned chat state."}
  </Card>
</Cards>