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KEIKI

WhatsApp agents

Setup guide

How to connect an AI agent to WhatsApp

Connect a WhatsApp Cloud API number from your Meta app: paste the access token, phone number ID, app secret and a verify token into Keiki, then put the callback URL Keiki gives you into the Meta app’s WhatsApp webhook settings. Messages route to the agent as soon as that webhook is saved.

Takes about 30 minutesUpdated

Create a free accountOr start from the Restaurant Host template

Before you start

What you need before you start.

  • A Keiki account, which is free to create
  • A Meta app with WhatsApp added, and a phone number registered on the Cloud API
  • A system user access token with the whatsapp_business_messaging permission
  • The phone number ID from WhatsApp → API Setup, plus your app secret
  • Access to the Meta app’s webhook settings: Meta has no API for that step, so it is done by hand once

Step by step

Six steps from a Meta app to a number that answers.

  1. Step 1

    Create a Keiki account

    Sign up at onkeiki.com. WhatsApp messaging is billed by Meta against your own WhatsApp Business account, so Keiki sits on top of the number you already pay for.

  2. Step 2

    Start from a template instead of a blank agent

    Open the Restaurant Host template. It arrives able to take a booking, answer the questions people actually send at 9pm, and reply in the language the customer wrote in — which is most of WhatsApp’s difficulty, already solved.

  3. Step 3

    Collect four values from your Meta app

    You need a system user access token with the whatsapp_business_messaging permission, the numeric phone number ID from WhatsApp → API Setup, your app secret, and a verify token you invent yourself. Add the business account ID too and Keiki subscribes the number for you.

  4. Step 4

    Add the number in Keiki

    On the Channels page, add a WhatsApp number and paste those values. Keiki checks the credentials live and shows which number they own, so you know you are connecting the right line before saving. Attach the agent here or later.

  5. Step 5

    Save the callback URL and verify token in Meta

    Keiki shows a callback URL and your verify token after the number is created. Paste both into the Meta app’s WhatsApp webhook settings, subscribe the webhook to the messages field — Meta has no API for either, so it is manual — and copy the verify token before you close the dialog, because it is never read back.

  6. Step 6

    Message the number from your own phone

    Send a real question and watch the thread in Conversations. Customer-initiated chats open a 24-hour window in which the agent can reply freely; outside it, WhatsApp only allows approved templates, which is Meta’s rule rather than Keiki’s.

More on what your WhatsApp agent does

Questions

Questions people ask while connecting an agent to WhatsApp.

Do I need the WhatsApp Business API to connect an AI agent?
Yes. Automated replies run on the WhatsApp Cloud API, not the consumer app, so the number lives in a Meta app you own. Keiki connects to that number with an access token and phone number ID rather than logging in as you.
Where do I find the phone number ID and access token?
In your Meta app under WhatsApp → API Setup. The phone number ID is Meta’s numeric identifier, not the phone number itself, and the access token should be a system user token carrying the whatsapp_business_messaging permission.
Why do I have to paste a webhook URL into Meta by hand?
Because Meta exposes no API for webhook configuration. Everything else is automated: Keiki generates the callback URL and holds the credentials, and you add that URL plus your verify token to the app’s WhatsApp webhook settings once and subscribe it to the messages field.
Can the agent message a customer first?
Only inside WhatsApp’s rules. A customer message opens a 24-hour window for free-form replies; outside that window WhatsApp requires an approved message template. The agent respects the window rather than pretending it does not exist.
Does the agent reply in the customer’s language?
Yes. It answers in the language the message arrived in, which matters on a channel where the same business gets Spanish, Arabic and English in the same evening.
How long does the whole setup take?
About thirty minutes, and almost all of it is Meta’s side: creating the app, registering the number and generating a token. Keiki’s part is one screen plus pasting the callback URL back into the Meta app.

Your busiest channel, answered.

Connect the Cloud API number once, and every 9pm message gets a real answer in the chat the customer already had open.

Get early accessOr open the Restaurant Host template