WhatsApp Business AI Auto-Reply: How to Set It Up
Your customer writes at midnight, "is this product in stock?" The app on your phone can only send a ready greeting. A system that understands the question and answers it needs the API and an AI bot. We walk through the difference, the rules and the setup in order.
"Can WhatsApp Business send automatic replies with AI?" We hear this question almost every week in demo calls. The short answer: yes, but not with the app on your phone. A bot that understands the customer's question and writes a reply accordingly needs the WhatsApp Business API and a panel that runs on top of that infrastructure.
Below we explain the ways automatic messages get sent, where the AI finds its answers, what it does when it doesn't know, and how to set it up with Chatopya, step by step.
In what ways are automatic messages sent on WhatsApp?
Three different things go by the same name, which is why expectations often get mixed up.
- Fixed automatic messages: A greeting message, an out-of-hours (away) message, quick replies. They come free in the WhatsApp Business app. They send everyone the same text.
- Smart in-chat replies: The customer writes, the bot understands what was asked and answers from the business's own information. It needs the API and a bot panel.
- Triggered notifications: Order received, shipped, appointment reminder. They go out when an event happens, without the customer writing first. They are sent with a Meta-approved template.
If you're looking for ready examples of greeting and out-of-hours texts, see our post on WhatsApp automatic message examples. Here we focus on the second and third types, meaning AI replies and automatic notifications.
Why aren't the app's automatic messages enough?
The greeting message in the app says, "Hi, we'll get back to you as soon as possible." Then it goes quiet. When a customer writes, "Do you have the black boots in size 42 in stock?", no answer comes; the chat waits for you to pick up your phone.
Meta is adding AI features on the app side too. But access to those features is limited and not offered in every country. In Turkey, if you want AI auto-replies for WhatsApp Business, meaning a setup that generates answers based on the question, is connected to your store and can hand over to your team, the route goes through the API.
| Topic | WhatsApp Business app | API + AI bot |
|---|---|---|
| Type of automatic message | Fixed greeting, away message, quick reply | Replies generated from the question, flows, triggered notifications |
| Source of information | The single text you write | Knowledge base, site pages, connected store and catalog |
| Team use | Work tied to a single phone | Several agents use the same number |
| Who it suits | Businesses that get a few messages a day, run by one person | Businesses with growing message traffic that want to answer outside business hours too |
Let's be honest: if you get five or ten messages a day and can handle all of them yourself, the app does the job. If questions have started to repeat and night-time messages to pile up, it's time to move to the API.
Where does the AI bot find its answers?
The concern we hear most: "What if the bot writes whatever it likes?" In Chatopya, the sources the bot answers from are defined, and you decide all of them.
Knowledge base
Your business information and your site pages live here: return conditions, delivery times, working hours, branch addresses. The AI answers frequent questions from this information, 24/7. Because it follows the conversation history, it understands what the customer means when they say, "and the blue one?" It tolerates typos, abbreviations and idioms, too; it replies in several languages, Turkish first.
Connected store and catalog
When you connect your Trendyol, Hepsiburada or Shopify store, product, stock and price information is updated at regular intervals. The bot can ask the customer what they need and suggest a suitable product from the catalog. When a category comes up, it lists the products, sends a PDF catalog or images, and directs the customer to the order and payment link.
On the order side, most of the work is solved with notifications. Order information goes to both the customer and you; when the shipping status changes, an automatic WhatsApp notification goes to the customer. You can find how these integrations work on our marketplace integration page. Note: the marketplace and Shopify integrations are not in the Starter plan; they are included in the other plans.
Flows
Not every question is solved with free chat. For step-by-step jobs such as an order form, booking an appointment, a survey or a return scenario, you build no-code flows with the drag-and-drop flow designer. WhatsApp Flows can also be used in the Business and Enterprise plans.
It doesn't make up what it doesn't know. When a question comes in that the knowledge base has no answer for, the bot doesn't generate a reply; it leaves the chat to an agent along with its history.
What happens when the bot doesn't know?
Handover. Your agent sees the chat on the Conversations screen, with everything the customer has written from the start, and the customer card stays open on the side. The customer doesn't have to explain the same thing a second time.
You decide when and to whom to hand over with working hours and the handover rule. Sentiment analysis tags an angry or worried customer right away, so the team knows where to look first. When a banned word appears, a notification goes to the manager, and a satisfaction (CSAT) survey is sent at the end of every conversation. We show in detail how the bot and agent sides work together on our WhatsApp customer service and AI chatbot page.
Try it with your own questions. Let's see together in a demo how the bot answers with your information.
Book a free demoHow do you set up AI auto-replies for WhatsApp Business?
Setup and training are free; our Turkish-speaking support team is with you at every step. The order roughly goes like this:
- Moving to the API: We run Meta business verification and the application on your behalf, using your tax certificate and brand details. You can move your existing number; in that case the WhatsApp Business app on your phone closes on that number and old chats don't move over. If you prefer, you start with a new number.
- Filling the knowledge base: You add answers to frequent questions, return and delivery conditions, and your site pages. The quality of the bot's answers depends on how current the information here is.
- Connecting the store: With a Trendyol, Hepsiburada or Shopify connection, product and order data comes into the panel; order and shipping notifications are triggered from here.
- Drawing the flows: You set up scenarios such as appointment, order form and return in the flow designer.
- Working-hour and handover rules: You decide at which hours handover to an agent happens.
- Test and launch: In Bot Center, you test the flow before publishing it. If all is well, you go live.
Panel setup takes about 5 minutes. If your number has never been registered with Meta before, Meta's own review time is added.
Which rules do automatic replies run into?
The 24-hour window
When a customer writes to you, a 24-hour customer service window opens and is renewed with each new message. The bot's free-text replies can go out only inside this window. After the window closes, writing to the customer requires a Meta-approved template message; that's why order and shipping notifications are sent with a template. Details are in our post on the WhatsApp 24-hour rule.
Fees
Since October 1, 2026, service messages inside the window are free for the first 1,000 per number per month, and charged after that. Utility templates sent inside the window are also charged; template messages in general are priced by category (marketing, utility, authentication). Meta's message fee is separate from the plan fee and comes through at Meta's unit price; Chatopya adds no commission. The use of the AI bot, on the other hand, works with a separate AI Bot credit package.
"Replies are free when the customer writes first" is no longer true. Once the monthly free service message allowance is used up, replies inside the window are charged too. Businesses with heavy traffic should plan their budget accordingly.
Meta's AI rule
With the WhatsApp Business terms that took effect on January 15, 2026, Meta restricted general-purpose AI assistants on the platform. Bots that give customer support about the business's own products and services are not the target of this restriction. In short: keep your bot focused on your business; don't build it as an assistant that chats about everything.
Frequently asked questions
Does the WhatsApp Business app have AI auto-replies?
The app has a fixed greeting, an away message and quick replies. Access to Meta's in-app AI features is limited and not offered in every country; for a bot that answers based on the question, the WhatsApp Business API is generally used.
Can the AI bot give customers wrong information?
In Chatopya, the bot doesn't make up an answer to a question the knowledge base has no answer for; it hands the chat to an agent along with its history. For correct answers, it's enough to keep the knowledge base up to date.
Can the bot answer stock and price questions?
Yes, if your store is connected. Stock and price information is updated from the connected store at regular intervals; it isn't instant.
Can I set up auto-replies with my existing WhatsApp number?
Yes, your number can be moved to the API. After the move, the WhatsApp Business app on your phone closes on that number and old chats aren't transferred.
Are automatic replies charged?
Within 24 hours of the customer writing, the first 1,000 service messages per number each month are free, and after that Meta charges for them. Template messages are charged by category; the AI bot also works with a separate credit package.
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Let's set up your automatic replies together
Let's show your knowledge base, store connection and handover rules in a demo, with your own scenarios. Setup and training are free.