WhatsApp Integration

Connect your AskIA bot to WhatsApp Business so customers can chat with it directly from their phone.

Prerequisites

An AskIA account with at least the Growth plan
A Meta Business account — business.facebook.com
A WhatsApp Business phone number (can be a new number — no SIM required)
A verified Meta App with the WhatsApp product enabled

No existing WhatsApp account needed

You don't need an existing WhatsApp account. Meta lets you register a new number (e.g. a VoIP number) directly in the developer portal.

Step 1 — Create a Meta App

Go to developers.facebook.com/apps
Click Create App → choose Business type
On the app dashboard, click Add Product and select WhatsApp
Follow the setup to link your Meta Business account and register a phone number

Step 2 — Collect your credentials

From the WhatsApp section of your Meta App, note down:

Phone Number ID — found under WhatsApp → API Setup
Permanent Access Token — generate one in Meta Business Settings → System Users
App Secret — found under App Settings → Basic

Use a permanent token

Temporary tokens expire after 24 hours. Always generate a permanent system user token in Meta Business Settings for production use.

Step 3 — Add the channel in AskIA

Open your bot in the AskIA dashboard
Go to the Integrations tab
Click Add channel → WhatsApp
Fill in:
- Phone Number ID
- Access Token
- App Secret
- Verify Token — choose any secret string, e.g. my-secret-token
Save the channel — AskIA will show you your Webhook URL

Step 4 — Configure the webhook in Meta

In your Meta App, go to WhatsApp → Configuration
Under Webhook, click Edit
Enter:
- Callback URL:
```
https://askiabot.com/api/webhooks/whatsapp/YOUR_BOT_ID
```
- Verify Token: the same string you set in step 3
Click Verify and Save
Under Webhook Fields, subscribe to messages

Replace YOUR_BOT_ID with the bot ID shown in your AskIA dashboard (Settings → Bot ID).

Step 5 — Test

Send a message to your WhatsApp Business number from any phone. You should receive a reply from the bot within a few seconds.

If the bot doesn't respond, check the Integrations tab in AskIA for error logs, and verify that the webhook is subscribed to the messages field in Meta.

Supported message types

Text messages — fully supported
Voice messages — transcribed and processed automatically
Images — received but not analysed (text reply only)
Template messages — used for outbound notifications (e.g. order status updates)

24-hour messaging window

WhatsApp only allows free-form replies within 24 hours of the last customer message. Outside that window, the bot can only send pre-approved message templates. This is a Meta policy, not an AskIA limitation.