diff --git a/src/components/views/emojipicker/Category.js b/src/components/views/emojipicker/Category.tsx
similarity index 68%
rename from src/components/views/emojipicker/Category.js
rename to src/components/views/emojipicker/Category.tsx
index eb3f83dcdf..c4feaac8ae 100644
--- a/src/components/views/emojipicker/Category.js
+++ b/src/components/views/emojipicker/Category.tsx
@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 /*
 Copyright 2019 Tulir Asokan <tulir@maunium.net>
+Copyright 2020 The Matrix.org Foundation C.I.C.
 
 Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
 you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
@@ -14,32 +15,53 @@ See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
 limitations under the License.
 */
 
-import React from 'react';
-import PropTypes from 'prop-types';
+import React, {RefObject} from 'react';
+
 import { CATEGORY_HEADER_HEIGHT, EMOJI_HEIGHT, EMOJIS_PER_ROW } from "./EmojiPicker";
-import * as sdk from '../../../index';
+import LazyRenderList from "../elements/LazyRenderList";
+import {DATA_BY_CATEGORY, IEmoji} from "../../../emoji";
+import Emoji from './Emoji';
 
 const OVERFLOW_ROWS = 3;
 
-class Category extends React.PureComponent {
-    static propTypes = {
-        emojis: PropTypes.arrayOf(PropTypes.object).isRequired,
-        name: PropTypes.string.isRequired,
-        id: PropTypes.string.isRequired,
-        onMouseEnter: PropTypes.func.isRequired,
-        onMouseLeave: PropTypes.func.isRequired,
-        onClick: PropTypes.func.isRequired,
-        selectedEmojis: PropTypes.instanceOf(Set),
-    };
+export type CategoryKey = (keyof typeof DATA_BY_CATEGORY) | "recent";
 
-    _renderEmojiRow = (rowIndex) => {
+export interface ICategory {
+    id: CategoryKey;
+    name: string;
+    enabled: boolean;
+    visible: boolean;
+    ref: RefObject<HTMLButtonElement>;
+}
+
+interface IProps {
+    id: string;
+    name: string;
+    emojis: IEmoji[];
+    selectedEmojis: Set<string>;
+    heightBefore: number;
+    viewportHeight: number;
+    scrollTop: number;
+    onClick(emoji: IEmoji): void;
+    onMouseEnter(emoji: IEmoji): void;
+    onMouseLeave(emoji: IEmoji): void;
+}
+
+class Category extends React.PureComponent<IProps> {
+    private renderEmojiRow = (rowIndex: number) => {
         const { onClick, onMouseEnter, onMouseLeave, selectedEmojis, emojis } = this.props;
         const emojisForRow = emojis.slice(rowIndex * 8, (rowIndex + 1) * 8);
-        const Emoji = sdk.getComponent("emojipicker.Emoji");
         return (<div key={rowIndex}>{
-            emojisForRow.map(emoji =>
-                <Emoji key={emoji.hexcode} emoji={emoji} selectedEmojis={selectedEmojis}
-                    onClick={onClick} onMouseEnter={onMouseEnter} onMouseLeave={onMouseLeave} />)
+            emojisForRow.map(emoji => ((
+                <Emoji
+                    key={emoji.hexcode}
+                    emoji={emoji}
+                    selectedEmojis={selectedEmojis}
+                    onClick={onClick}
+                    onMouseEnter={onMouseEnter}
+                    onMouseLeave={onMouseLeave}
+                />
+            )))
         }</div>);
     };
 
@@ -52,7 +74,6 @@ class Category extends React.PureComponent {
         for (let counter = 0; counter < rows.length; ++counter) {
             rows[counter] = counter;
         }
-        const LazyRenderList = sdk.getComponent('elements.LazyRenderList');
 
         const viewportTop = scrollTop;
         const viewportBottom = viewportTop + viewportHeight;
@@ -84,7 +105,7 @@ class Category extends React.PureComponent {
                     height={localHeight}
                     overflowItems={OVERFLOW_ROWS}
                     overflowMargin={0}
-                    renderItem={this._renderEmojiRow}>
+                    renderItem={this.renderEmojiRow}>
                 </LazyRenderList>
             </section>
         );
diff --git a/src/components/views/emojipicker/Emoji.js b/src/components/views/emojipicker/Emoji.tsx
similarity index 81%
rename from src/components/views/emojipicker/Emoji.js
rename to src/components/views/emojipicker/Emoji.tsx
index 36aa4ff782..5d715fb935 100644
--- a/src/components/views/emojipicker/Emoji.js
+++ b/src/components/views/emojipicker/Emoji.tsx
@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 /*
 Copyright 2019 Tulir Asokan <tulir@maunium.net>
+Copyright 2020 The Matrix.org Foundation C.I.C.
 
 Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
 you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
@@ -15,18 +16,19 @@ limitations under the License.
 */
 
 import React from 'react';
-import PropTypes from 'prop-types';
+
 import {MenuItem} from "../../structures/ContextMenu";
+import {IEmoji} from "../../../emoji";
 
-class Emoji extends React.PureComponent {
-    static propTypes = {
-        onClick: PropTypes.func,
-        onMouseEnter: PropTypes.func,
-        onMouseLeave: PropTypes.func,
-        emoji: PropTypes.object.isRequired,
-        selectedEmojis: PropTypes.instanceOf(Set),
-    };
+interface IProps {
+    emoji: IEmoji;
+    selectedEmojis?: Set<string>;
+    onClick(emoji: IEmoji): void;
+    onMouseEnter(emoji: IEmoji): void;
+    onMouseLeave(emoji: IEmoji): void;
+}
 
+class Emoji extends React.PureComponent<IProps> {
     render() {
         const { onClick, onMouseEnter, onMouseLeave, emoji, selectedEmojis } = this.props;
         const isSelected = selectedEmojis && selectedEmojis.has(emoji.unicode);
diff --git a/src/components/views/emojipicker/EmojiPicker.js b/src/components/views/emojipicker/EmojiPicker.tsx
similarity index 65%
rename from src/components/views/emojipicker/EmojiPicker.js
rename to src/components/views/emojipicker/EmojiPicker.tsx
index 16a0fc67e7..bf0481c51c 100644
--- a/src/components/views/emojipicker/EmojiPicker.js
+++ b/src/components/views/emojipicker/EmojiPicker.tsx
@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 /*
 Copyright 2019 Tulir Asokan <tulir@maunium.net>
+Copyright 2020 The Matrix.org Foundation C.I.C.
 
 Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
 you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
@@ -15,25 +16,43 @@ limitations under the License.
 */
 
 import React from 'react';
-import PropTypes from 'prop-types';
 
-import * as sdk from '../../../index';
 import { _t } from '../../../languageHandler';
-
 import * as recent from '../../../emojipicker/recent';
-import {DATA_BY_CATEGORY, getEmojiFromUnicode} from "../../../emoji";
+import {DATA_BY_CATEGORY, getEmojiFromUnicode, IEmoji} from "../../../emoji";
 import AutoHideScrollbar from "../../structures/AutoHideScrollbar";
+import Header from "./Header";
+import Search from "./Search";
+import Preview from "./Preview";
+import QuickReactions from "./QuickReactions";
+import Category, {ICategory, CategoryKey} from "./Category";
 
 export const CATEGORY_HEADER_HEIGHT = 22;
 export const EMOJI_HEIGHT = 37;
 export const EMOJIS_PER_ROW = 8;
 
-class EmojiPicker extends React.Component {
-    static propTypes = {
-        onChoose: PropTypes.func.isRequired,
-        selectedEmojis: PropTypes.instanceOf(Set),
-        showQuickReactions: PropTypes.bool,
-    };
+interface IProps {
+    selectedEmojis: Set<string>;
+    showQuickReactions?: boolean;
+    onChoose(unicode: string): boolean;
+}
+
+interface IState {
+    filter: string;
+    previewEmoji?: IEmoji;
+    scrollTop: number;
+    // initial estimation of height, dialog is hardcoded to 450px height.
+    // should be enough to never have blank rows of emojis as
+    // 3 rows of overflow are also rendered. The actual value is updated on scroll.
+    viewportHeight: number;
+}
+
+class EmojiPicker extends React.Component<IProps, IState> {
+    private readonly recentlyUsed: IEmoji[];
+    private readonly memoizedDataByCategory: Record<CategoryKey, IEmoji[]>;
+    private readonly categories: ICategory[];
+
+    private bodyRef = React.createRef<HTMLDivElement>();
 
     constructor(props) {
         super(props);
@@ -42,9 +61,6 @@ class EmojiPicker extends React.Component {
             filter: "",
             previewEmoji: null,
             scrollTop: 0,
-            // initial estimation of height, dialog is hardcoded to 450px height.
-            // should be enough to never have blank rows of emojis as
-            // 3 rows of overflow are also rendered. The actual value is updated on scroll.
             viewportHeight: 280,
         };
 
@@ -110,18 +126,9 @@ class EmojiPicker extends React.Component {
             visible: false,
             ref: React.createRef(),
         }];
-
-        this.bodyRef = React.createRef();
-
-        this.onChangeFilter = this.onChangeFilter.bind(this);
-        this.onHoverEmoji = this.onHoverEmoji.bind(this);
-        this.onHoverEmojiEnd = this.onHoverEmojiEnd.bind(this);
-        this.onClickEmoji = this.onClickEmoji.bind(this);
-        this.scrollToCategory = this.scrollToCategory.bind(this);
-        this.updateVisibility = this.updateVisibility.bind(this);
     }
 
-    onScroll = () => {
+    private onScroll = () => {
         const body = this.bodyRef.current;
         this.setState({
             scrollTop: body.scrollTop,
@@ -130,7 +137,7 @@ class EmojiPicker extends React.Component {
         this.updateVisibility();
     };
 
-    updateVisibility() {
+    private updateVisibility = () => {
         const body = this.bodyRef.current;
         const rect = body.getBoundingClientRect();
         for (const cat of this.categories) {
@@ -147,21 +154,21 @@ class EmojiPicker extends React.Component {
             // We update this here instead of through React to avoid re-render on scroll.
             if (cat.visible) {
                 cat.ref.current.classList.add("mx_EmojiPicker_anchor_visible");
-                cat.ref.current.setAttribute("aria-selected", true);
-                cat.ref.current.setAttribute("tabindex", 0);
+                cat.ref.current.setAttribute("aria-selected", "true");
+                cat.ref.current.setAttribute("tabindex", "0");
             } else {
                 cat.ref.current.classList.remove("mx_EmojiPicker_anchor_visible");
-                cat.ref.current.setAttribute("aria-selected", false);
-                cat.ref.current.setAttribute("tabindex", -1);
+                cat.ref.current.setAttribute("aria-selected", "false");
+                cat.ref.current.setAttribute("tabindex", "-1");
             }
         }
-    }
+    };
 
-    scrollToCategory(category) {
+    private scrollToCategory = (category: string) => {
         this.bodyRef.current.querySelector(`[data-category-id="${category}"]`).scrollIntoView();
-    }
+    };
 
-    onChangeFilter(filter) {
+    private onChangeFilter = (filter: string) => {
         filter = filter.toLowerCase(); // filter is case insensitive stored lower-case
         for (const cat of this.categories) {
             let emojis;
@@ -181,27 +188,34 @@ class EmojiPicker extends React.Component {
         // Header underlines need to be updated, but updating requires knowing
         // where the categories are, so we wait for a tick.
         setTimeout(this.updateVisibility, 0);
-    }
+    };
 
-    onHoverEmoji(emoji) {
+    private onEnterFilter = () => {
+        const btn = this.bodyRef.current.querySelector<HTMLButtonElement>(".mx_EmojiPicker_item");
+        if (btn) {
+            btn.click();
+        }
+    };
+
+    private onHoverEmoji = (emoji: IEmoji) => {
         this.setState({
             previewEmoji: emoji,
         });
-    }
+    };
 
-    onHoverEmojiEnd(emoji) {
+    private onHoverEmojiEnd = (emoji: IEmoji) => {
         this.setState({
             previewEmoji: null,
         });
-    }
+    };
 
-    onClickEmoji(emoji) {
+    private onClickEmoji = (emoji: IEmoji) => {
         if (this.props.onChoose(emoji.unicode) !== false) {
             recent.add(emoji.unicode);
         }
-    }
+    };
 
-    _categoryHeightForEmojiCount(count) {
+    private static categoryHeightForEmojiCount(count: number) {
         if (count === 0) {
             return 0;
         }
@@ -209,25 +223,37 @@ class EmojiPicker extends React.Component {
     }
 
     render() {
-        const Header = sdk.getComponent("emojipicker.Header");
-        const Search = sdk.getComponent("emojipicker.Search");
-        const Category = sdk.getComponent("emojipicker.Category");
-        const Preview = sdk.getComponent("emojipicker.Preview");
-        const QuickReactions = sdk.getComponent("emojipicker.QuickReactions");
         let heightBefore = 0;
         return (
             <div className="mx_EmojiPicker">
-                <Header categories={this.categories} defaultCategory="recent" onAnchorClick={this.scrollToCategory} />
-                <Search query={this.state.filter} onChange={this.onChangeFilter} />
-                <AutoHideScrollbar className="mx_EmojiPicker_body" wrappedRef={e => this.bodyRef.current = e} onScroll={this.onScroll}>
+                <Header categories={this.categories} onAnchorClick={this.scrollToCategory} />
+                <Search query={this.state.filter} onChange={this.onChangeFilter} onEnter={this.onEnterFilter} />
+                <AutoHideScrollbar
+                    className="mx_EmojiPicker_body"
+                    wrappedRef={ref => {
+                        // @ts-ignore - AutoHideScrollbar should accept a RefObject or fall back to its own instead
+                        this.bodyRef.current = ref
+                    }}
+                    onScroll={this.onScroll}
+                >
                     {this.categories.map(category => {
                         const emojis = this.memoizedDataByCategory[category.id];
-                        const categoryElement = (<Category key={category.id} id={category.id} name={category.name}
-                            heightBefore={heightBefore} viewportHeight={this.state.viewportHeight}
-                            scrollTop={this.state.scrollTop} emojis={emojis} onClick={this.onClickEmoji}
-                            onMouseEnter={this.onHoverEmoji} onMouseLeave={this.onHoverEmojiEnd}
-                            selectedEmojis={this.props.selectedEmojis} />);
-                        const height = this._categoryHeightForEmojiCount(emojis.length);
+                        const categoryElement = ((
+                            <Category
+                                key={category.id}
+                                id={category.id}
+                                name={category.name}
+                                heightBefore={heightBefore}
+                                viewportHeight={this.state.viewportHeight}
+                                scrollTop={this.state.scrollTop}
+                                emojis={emojis}
+                                onClick={this.onClickEmoji}
+                                onMouseEnter={this.onHoverEmoji}
+                                onMouseLeave={this.onHoverEmojiEnd}
+                                selectedEmojis={this.props.selectedEmojis}
+                            />
+                        ));
+                        const height = EmojiPicker.categoryHeightForEmojiCount(emojis.length);
                         heightBefore += height;
                         return categoryElement;
                     })}
diff --git a/src/components/views/emojipicker/Header.js b/src/components/views/emojipicker/Header.tsx
similarity index 83%
rename from src/components/views/emojipicker/Header.js
rename to src/components/views/emojipicker/Header.tsx
index c53437e02d..9a93722483 100644
--- a/src/components/views/emojipicker/Header.js
+++ b/src/components/views/emojipicker/Header.tsx
@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 /*
 Copyright 2019 Tulir Asokan <tulir@maunium.net>
+Copyright 2020 The Matrix.org Foundation C.I.C.
 
 Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
 you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
@@ -15,19 +16,19 @@ limitations under the License.
 */
 
 import React from 'react';
-import PropTypes from 'prop-types';
 import classNames from "classnames";
 
 import {_t} from "../../../languageHandler";
 import {Key} from "../../../Keyboard";
+import {CategoryKey, ICategory} from "./Category";
 
-class Header extends React.PureComponent {
-    static propTypes = {
-        categories: PropTypes.arrayOf(PropTypes.object).isRequired,
-        onAnchorClick: PropTypes.func.isRequired,
-    };
+interface IProps {
+    categories: ICategory[];
+    onAnchorClick(id: CategoryKey): void
+}
 
-    findNearestEnabled(index, delta) {
+class Header extends React.PureComponent<IProps> {
+    private findNearestEnabled(index: number, delta: number) {
         index += this.props.categories.length;
         const cats = [...this.props.categories, ...this.props.categories, ...this.props.categories];
 
@@ -37,12 +38,12 @@ class Header extends React.PureComponent {
         }
     }
 
-    changeCategoryRelative(delta) {
+    private changeCategoryRelative(delta: number) {
         const current = this.props.categories.findIndex(c => c.visible);
         this.changeCategoryAbsolute(current + delta, delta);
     }
 
-    changeCategoryAbsolute(index, delta=1) {
+    private changeCategoryAbsolute(index: number, delta=1) {
         const category = this.props.categories[this.findNearestEnabled(index, delta)];
         if (category) {
             this.props.onAnchorClick(category.id);
@@ -52,7 +53,7 @@ class Header extends React.PureComponent {
 
     // Implements ARIA Tabs with Automatic Activation pattern
     // https://www.w3.org/TR/wai-aria-practices/examples/tabs/tabs-1/tabs.html
-    onKeyDown = (ev) => {
+    private onKeyDown = (ev: React.KeyboardEvent) => {
         let handled = true;
         switch (ev.key) {
             case Key.ARROW_LEFT:
@@ -80,7 +81,12 @@ class Header extends React.PureComponent {
 
     render() {
         return (
-            <nav className="mx_EmojiPicker_header" role="tablist" aria-label={_t("Categories")} onKeyDown={this.onKeyDown}>
+            <nav
+                className="mx_EmojiPicker_header"
+                role="tablist"
+                aria-label={_t("Categories")}
+                onKeyDown={this.onKeyDown}
+            >
                 {this.props.categories.map(category => {
                     const classes = classNames(`mx_EmojiPicker_anchor mx_EmojiPicker_anchor_${category.id}`, {
                         mx_EmojiPicker_anchor_visible: category.visible,
diff --git a/src/components/views/emojipicker/Preview.js b/src/components/views/emojipicker/Preview.tsx
similarity index 88%
rename from src/components/views/emojipicker/Preview.js
rename to src/components/views/emojipicker/Preview.tsx
index bbe2bcb22c..69bfdf4d1c 100644
--- a/src/components/views/emojipicker/Preview.js
+++ b/src/components/views/emojipicker/Preview.tsx
@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 /*
 Copyright 2019 Tulir Asokan <tulir@maunium.net>
+Copyright 2020 The Matrix.org Foundation C.I.C.
 
 Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
 you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
@@ -15,19 +16,21 @@ limitations under the License.
 */
 
 import React from 'react';
-import PropTypes from 'prop-types';
 
-class Preview extends React.PureComponent {
-    static propTypes = {
-        emoji: PropTypes.object,
-    };
+import {IEmoji} from "../../../emoji";
 
+interface IProps {
+    emoji: IEmoji;
+}
+
+class Preview extends React.PureComponent<IProps> {
     render() {
         const {
             unicode = "",
             annotation = "",
             shortcodes: [shortcode = ""],
         } = this.props.emoji || {};
+
         return (
             <div className="mx_EmojiPicker_footer mx_EmojiPicker_preview">
                 <div className="mx_EmojiPicker_preview_emoji">
diff --git a/src/components/views/emojipicker/QuickReactions.js b/src/components/views/emojipicker/QuickReactions.tsx
similarity index 69%
rename from src/components/views/emojipicker/QuickReactions.js
rename to src/components/views/emojipicker/QuickReactions.tsx
index 2f30ae767e..0477ecfb93 100644
--- a/src/components/views/emojipicker/QuickReactions.js
+++ b/src/components/views/emojipicker/QuickReactions.tsx
@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 /*
 Copyright 2019 Tulir Asokan <tulir@maunium.net>
+Copyright 2020 The Matrix.org Foundation C.I.C.
 
 Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
 you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
@@ -15,11 +16,10 @@ limitations under the License.
 */
 
 import React from 'react';
-import PropTypes from 'prop-types';
 
-import * as sdk from '../../../index';
 import { _t } from '../../../languageHandler';
-import {getEmojiFromUnicode} from "../../../emoji";
+import {getEmojiFromUnicode, IEmoji} from "../../../emoji";
+import Emoji from "./Emoji";
 
 // We use the variation-selector Heart in Quick Reactions for some reason
 const QUICK_REACTIONS = ["👍", "👎", "😄", "🎉", "😕", "❤️", "🚀", "👀"].map(emoji => {
@@ -30,36 +30,36 @@ const QUICK_REACTIONS = ["👍", "👎", "😄", "🎉", "😕", "❤️", "🚀
     return data;
 });
 
-class QuickReactions extends React.Component {
-    static propTypes = {
-        onClick: PropTypes.func.isRequired,
-        selectedEmojis: PropTypes.instanceOf(Set),
-    };
+interface IProps {
+    selectedEmojis?: Set<string>;
+    onClick(emoji: IEmoji): void;
+}
 
+interface IState {
+    hover?: IEmoji;
+}
+
+class QuickReactions extends React.Component<IProps, IState> {
     constructor(props) {
         super(props);
         this.state = {
             hover: null,
         };
-        this.onMouseEnter = this.onMouseEnter.bind(this);
-        this.onMouseLeave = this.onMouseLeave.bind(this);
     }
 
-    onMouseEnter(emoji) {
+    private onMouseEnter = (emoji: IEmoji) => {
         this.setState({
             hover: emoji,
         });
-    }
+    };
 
-    onMouseLeave() {
+    private onMouseLeave = () => {
         this.setState({
             hover: null,
         });
-    }
+    };
 
     render() {
-        const Emoji = sdk.getComponent("emojipicker.Emoji");
-
         return (
             <section className="mx_EmojiPicker_footer mx_EmojiPicker_quick mx_EmojiPicker_category">
                 <h2 className="mx_EmojiPicker_quick_header mx_EmojiPicker_category_label">
@@ -72,10 +72,16 @@ class QuickReactions extends React.Component {
                     }
                 </h2>
                 <ul className="mx_EmojiPicker_list" aria-label={_t("Quick Reactions")}>
-                    {QUICK_REACTIONS.map(emoji => <Emoji
-                        key={emoji.hexcode} emoji={emoji} onClick={this.props.onClick}
-                        onMouseEnter={this.onMouseEnter} onMouseLeave={this.onMouseLeave}
-                        selectedEmojis={this.props.selectedEmojis} />)}
+                    {QUICK_REACTIONS.map(emoji => ((
+                        <Emoji
+                            key={emoji.hexcode}
+                            emoji={emoji}
+                            onClick={this.props.onClick}
+                            onMouseEnter={this.onMouseEnter}
+                            onMouseLeave={this.onMouseLeave}
+                            selectedEmojis={this.props.selectedEmojis}
+                        />
+                    )))}
                 </ul>
             </section>
         );
diff --git a/src/components/views/emojipicker/ReactionPicker.js b/src/components/views/emojipicker/ReactionPicker.tsx
similarity index 77%
rename from src/components/views/emojipicker/ReactionPicker.js
rename to src/components/views/emojipicker/ReactionPicker.tsx
index 6f8cc46c40..dbef0eadbe 100644
--- a/src/components/views/emojipicker/ReactionPicker.js
+++ b/src/components/views/emojipicker/ReactionPicker.tsx
@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 /*
 Copyright 2019 Tulir Asokan <tulir@maunium.net>
+Copyright 2020 The Matrix.org Foundation C.I.C.
 
 Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
 you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
@@ -15,26 +16,29 @@ limitations under the License.
 */
 
 import React from 'react';
-import PropTypes from "prop-types";
+import {MatrixEvent} from "matrix-js-sdk/src/models/event";
+
 import EmojiPicker from "./EmojiPicker";
 import {MatrixClientPeg} from "../../../MatrixClientPeg";
 import dis from "../../../dispatcher/dispatcher";
 
-class ReactionPicker extends React.Component {
-    static propTypes = {
-        mxEvent: PropTypes.object.isRequired,
-        onFinished: PropTypes.func.isRequired,
-        reactions: PropTypes.object,
-    };
+interface IProps {
+    mxEvent: MatrixEvent;
+    reactions: any; // TODO type this once js-sdk is more typescripted
+    onFinished(): void;
+}
 
+interface IState {
+    selectedEmojis: Set<string>;
+}
+
+class ReactionPicker extends React.Component<IProps, IState> {
     constructor(props) {
         super(props);
 
         this.state = {
             selectedEmojis: new Set(Object.keys(this.getReactions())),
         };
-        this.onChoose = this.onChoose.bind(this);
-        this.onReactionsChange = this.onReactionsChange.bind(this);
         this.addListeners();
     }
 
@@ -45,7 +49,7 @@ class ReactionPicker extends React.Component {
         }
     }
 
-    addListeners() {
+    private addListeners() {
         if (this.props.reactions) {
             this.props.reactions.on("Relations.add", this.onReactionsChange);
             this.props.reactions.on("Relations.remove", this.onReactionsChange);
@@ -55,22 +59,13 @@ class ReactionPicker extends React.Component {
 
     componentWillUnmount() {
         if (this.props.reactions) {
-            this.props.reactions.removeListener(
-                "Relations.add",
-                this.onReactionsChange,
-            );
-            this.props.reactions.removeListener(
-                "Relations.remove",
-                this.onReactionsChange,
-            );
-            this.props.reactions.removeListener(
-                "Relations.redaction",
-                this.onReactionsChange,
-            );
+            this.props.reactions.removeListener("Relations.add", this.onReactionsChange);
+            this.props.reactions.removeListener("Relations.remove", this.onReactionsChange);
+            this.props.reactions.removeListener("Relations.redaction", this.onReactionsChange);
         }
     }
 
-    getReactions() {
+    private getReactions() {
         if (!this.props.reactions) {
             return {};
         }
@@ -81,13 +76,13 @@ class ReactionPicker extends React.Component {
             .map(event => [event.getRelation().key, event.getId()]));
     }
 
-    onReactionsChange() {
+    private onReactionsChange = () => {
         this.setState({
             selectedEmojis: new Set(Object.keys(this.getReactions())),
         });
-    }
+    };
 
-    onChoose(reaction) {
+    onChoose = (reaction: string) => {
         this.componentWillUnmount();
         this.props.onFinished();
         const myReactions = this.getReactions();
@@ -109,7 +104,7 @@ class ReactionPicker extends React.Component {
             dis.dispatch({action: "message_sent"});
             return true;
         }
-    }
+    };
 
     render() {
         return <EmojiPicker
diff --git a/src/components/views/emojipicker/Search.js b/src/components/views/emojipicker/Search.tsx
similarity index 56%
rename from src/components/views/emojipicker/Search.js
rename to src/components/views/emojipicker/Search.tsx
index 3432dadea8..fe1fecec7b 100644
--- a/src/components/views/emojipicker/Search.js
+++ b/src/components/views/emojipicker/Search.tsx
@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 /*
 Copyright 2019 Tulir Asokan <tulir@maunium.net>
+Copyright 2020 The Matrix.org Foundation C.I.C.
 
 Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
 you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
@@ -15,32 +16,41 @@ limitations under the License.
 */
 
 import React from 'react';
-import PropTypes from 'prop-types';
+
 import { _t } from '../../../languageHandler';
+import {Key} from "../../../Keyboard";
 
-class Search extends React.PureComponent {
-    static propTypes = {
-        query: PropTypes.string.isRequired,
-        onChange: PropTypes.func.isRequired,
-    };
+interface IProps {
+    query: string;
+    onChange(value: string): void;
+    onEnter(): void;
+}
 
-    constructor(props) {
-        super(props);
-        this.inputRef = React.createRef();
-    }
+class Search extends React.PureComponent<IProps> {
+    private inputRef = React.createRef<HTMLInputElement>();
 
     componentDidMount() {
         // For some reason, neither the autoFocus nor just calling focus() here worked, so here's a setTimeout
         setTimeout(() => this.inputRef.current.focus(), 0);
     }
 
+    private onKeyDown = (ev: React.KeyboardEvent) => {
+        if (ev.key === Key.ENTER) {
+            this.props.onEnter();
+            ev.stopPropagation();
+            ev.preventDefault();
+        }
+    };
+
     render() {
         let rightButton;
         if (this.props.query) {
             rightButton = (
-                <button onClick={() => this.props.onChange("")}
-                        className="mx_EmojiPicker_search_icon mx_EmojiPicker_search_clear"
-                        title={_t("Cancel search")} />
+                <button
+                    onClick={() => this.props.onChange("")}
+                    className="mx_EmojiPicker_search_icon mx_EmojiPicker_search_clear"
+                    title={_t("Cancel search")}
+                />
             );
         } else {
             rightButton = <span className="mx_EmojiPicker_search_icon" />;
@@ -48,8 +58,15 @@ class Search extends React.PureComponent {
 
         return (
             <div className="mx_EmojiPicker_search">
-                <input autoFocus type="text" placeholder="Search" value={this.props.query}
-                    onChange={ev => this.props.onChange(ev.target.value)} ref={this.inputRef} />
+                <input
+                    autoFocus
+                    type="text"
+                    placeholder="Search"
+                    value={this.props.query}
+                    onChange={ev => this.props.onChange(ev.target.value)}
+                    onKeyDown={this.onKeyDown}
+                    ref={this.inputRef}
+                />
                 {rightButton}
             </div>
         );