WhatsApp & Telegram Setup: The Agent Playbook

About This Guide

The WhatsApp and Telegram Bot Setup Guide covers connecting OpenClaw to both messaging platforms so you can interact with your AI agent directly from your phone. WhatsApp Business API access requires a Meta developer account and phone number verification, which the guide walks through step by step including the initial webhook configuration and message template approval process. For Telegram, the guide covers creating a bot with BotFather, setting up a webhook endpoint, handling update types including text, commands, and inline queries, and sending formatted responses with Markdown. You will learn how to route incoming messages to the correct OpenClaw agent, handle conversation state across sessions, implement rate limiting to stay within platform limits, and add basic user authentication to restrict access. Both integrations are covered in a unified webhook handler. Estimated setup time is 45-60 minutes per platform. No prior messaging API experience is required.