The WhatsApp channel lets the end users of your Ubidots App talk to your Industrial AI agents from WhatsApp. It runs on Ubidots' managed WhatsApp number, so you don't need a number or a Meta account of your own: create the channel in AI Center → Channels, share its link, and your end users log in with their app user to reach the agents you allow.
Each end user only gets answers about the devices and data they can see in your app, because the agent works with that user's permissions.
To answer on your own WhatsApp number instead, see Talk to Your Industrial AI Agents through WhatsApp Using Whapi. For a chat inside your app, see Web Console for End Users.
Requirements
A plan that includes AI Center. See AI Center: Overview, Plans and AI Credits.
An account owner or admin user.
At least one agent. See Create and Configure AI Agents.
A Ubidots App whose end users will log in. See Ubidots App(s).
1. How it works
One managed number, many channels. Every WhatsApp - Managed channel answers on Ubidots' number, +1 201-257-9816. Each channel has a Unique identifier that routes the conversation to it, so one app can have several channels, for example one per team or site.
Login, not an allowlist. Anyone can write to the number, but nobody reaches an agent until they log in with a user of your app. Your access rules then decide which agents each user gets.
Permissions carry over. The agent answers with the permissions of the logged-in user.
Agents answer; they don't start conversations. To send alerts to WhatsApp, use an event action. See IoT Alerts: Sending WhatsApp Notifications with Ubidots.
2. Create a WhatsApp channel
Go to AI Center → Channels, click Add channel and choose WhatsApp - Managed.
Setup
Check the App whose users will log in. If your account has several apps, pick one; with a single app, it's already set. The app can't be changed later.
Enter a Channel name. It's suggested as "App name WhatsApp", and your end users see it in the assistant's messages. Optionally, add a one-sentence Description for your team.
Check the Unique identifier. Your end users send it to find this channel, so keep it short and easy to type. Use lowercase letters, digits,
_or-, with at least one letter and at least one digit or_, for exampleacme_plant. If someone else already uses it, you'll see This identifier is already taken.Click Next.
Note: The identifier is unique across Ubidots and can't be changed after the channel is created. Deleting the channel frees it. |
Access
In the Access tab, click Add rule, choose who the rule covers (All end users, Specific users or By tag) and pick its agents. Add at least one rule. Rules work the same way as in the web console: see Web Console for End Users.
Instructions
In the Instructions tab, Channel-specific instructions are added to the agent's system prompt only on this channel. Click Use suggested instructions for WhatsApp-friendly formatting (bold with asterisks, short replies, no long tables), or write your own. This is also the place to set the language the agent should answer in.
Create
Click Create channel. The channel is live right away, and the Share your channel dialog opens.
3. Share the channel with your end users
The Share your channel dialog gives you three things to send to your end users:
Share link: opens WhatsApp with a greeting that already carries the channel's identifier, so your users only tap Send.
WhatsApp number: Ubidots' managed number, for users who prefer to write directly.
Unique identifier: what users send to the number to reach your channel.
Copy them with the copy buttons and click Done. To see them again later, open the channel and click Share. The channel's Setup tab also shows the identifier and the share link.
4. Pause or delete the channel
Pause or resume: use Pause or Resume in the channel's ⋮ menu. While the channel is paused, its identifier isn't recognized and nobody can log in to it.
Edit: open the channel, change its name, description, access rules or instructions, and click Save.
Delete: use Delete in the ⋮ menu and confirm. This can't be undone, and the identifier becomes available again.
5. What your end users do
Start a conversation
Users tap the share link and send the greeting. They can also write to the number directly; the assistant then asks which channel they want to talk to, and they reply with the channel's identifier.
Log in
The assistant replies with a Log in button. It opens your app's login page, where users sign in with their usual app user and confirm linking their WhatsApp account. Then they go back to WhatsApp and send their question.
Each login link works once and expires. Send
/loginto get a new one.If no access rule includes the user, they see: "Your account has no assistant here yet. Ask your provider for access." Add them to a rule, and they can continue with their next message.
Chat, switch and log out
Users write their questions as normal text messages. Agents read text only: voice notes, images and files get no answer.
Sending
menuopens Options: Change assistant, Switch channel, Log out and Help.To move to another channel, users choose Switch channel in the menu, or send
/loginfollowed by the channel's identifier.Logging out from the menu asks for confirmation first.
6. Quick reference for your end users
Copy this block into your own instructions for your users, replacing the parts in brackets:
Talk to our assistant on WhatsApp 1. Open [share link] and tap Send. Or write to +1 201-257-9816 and send [identifier]. 2. Tap Log in and sign in with your [app name] user. 3. Ask your question. Send menu at any time to see your options. |
Send | To |
| See your options |
| Get a new login link, or log in to another channel with |
| List your assistants and change to another one |
| List your channels and switch to another one |
| Log out |
| See all commands |
FAQ
Do I need my own WhatsApp number or a Meta Business account?
No. The channel runs on Ubidots' managed number. You only create the channel and share its link. To use your own number, see Talk to Your Industrial AI Agents through WhatsApp Using Whapi.
Who can write to the number?
Anyone with WhatsApp. But only users who log in with a user of your app, and who are included in an access rule, can talk to your agents.
Can my agents send alerts on WhatsApp?
Agents answer the messages your users send; they don't start conversations. To send alerts when data crosses a threshold, use an event with a WhatsApp action. See IoT Alerts: Sending WhatsApp Notifications with Ubidots.
The login link expired. What now?
Send /login to get a new one. Only the most recent link works.
What language does the assistant use?
The fixed messages (login, menus and help) are in English. The agent itself can answer in your users' language: say so in the agent's system prompt or in the channel's instructions.
Do WhatsApp conversations use AI credits?
Yes. Every message an agent answers uses AI credits from your account, whatever the channel. See AI Center: Overview, Plans and AI Credits.
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