- Meta will ban all third-party general AI chatbots, such as ChatGPT and Perplexity, from WhatsApp in January
- Users will be forced to migrate to other platforms unless they switch to Meta AI
- The move is to reduce the infrastructure load, but it also gives more power to Meta’s AI assistant and more data to the business
Meta closes the door to third-party AI assistants inside WhatsApp. From January 15, 2026, no general purpose AI chatbot, including ChatGPT, Perplexity and others, will be allowed to operate on the platform. The change is part of an update to WhatsApp’s Business API policy, which prohibits developers of “large language models, generative AI platforms or general purpose AI assistants” from accessing the system.
In short, Meta locks down the world’s largest messaging app to ensure that the only chatbot you’ll find inside it is Meta AI.
For a company that has spent the past year weaving its Meta AI into every corner of its products, this isn’t all that surprising. WhatsApp is a huge platform for Meta to test AI ideas, and hosting a number of third-party chatbots means that not everyone turns to Meta AI for help.
But all the other bots will now have to pack up and go.
WhatsApp has more than three billion users, making it one of the most valuable gateways to consumer AI imaginable. Allowing third-party assistants to thrive inside essentially gave competitors like OpenAI access to Meta’s user base, without Meta’s own monetization plans. Now, by closing the door, the company is ensuring that Meta AI will be the only chatbot with built-in reach across WhatsApp, Instagram and Messenger.
Meta claims this is about infrastructure, saying in a statement that these chatbots strain the platform due to the large volume of messages and the support required to maintain them. Whether that’s true, given that companies that use AI for customer service, such as banks, airlines and digital stores, won’t be affected is unclear.
The new WhatsApp policy effectively cements a one-app, one-assistant strategy, which could cause problems for those who like to use multiple apps on a single platform. For millions of users who discovered ChatGPT or Perplexity through WhatsApp, the ban means a significant shift in how they access these assistants.
From next year, they will have to use standalone apps or websites instead of chatting in their daily messenger. At least OpenAI seems to be taking the news with a trace of humor.
Meta changed its policies so that 1-800-ChatGPT will not work on WhatsApp after January 15, 2026. Fortunately, we have an app, website, and browser that you can use instead to access ChatGPT.22 October 2025
Meta AI’s data pipeline gives the company plenty of incentives to hold conversations internally. Every chat that happens with Meta AI is another opportunity to refine recommendations and customize ads. Conversations that take place with external assistants, on the other hand, are interactions that Meta cannot analyze or monetize.
And Meta’s framing is not necessarily completely inattentive. WhatsApp’s Business API was built, as the name suggests, for transactions, not general chats. AI assistants blur the line between business and personal use.
Still, the policy is written broadly enough that Meta retains full discretion to define what qualifies as “general AI.” This means it can theoretically block future apps it deems competitive or outside its comfort zone, even if they serve a legitimate use case.
Nor is Meta’s takeover unique. Google integrated Gemini into its search and productivity apps, Apple has worked with OpenAI to bring ChatGPT into Siri, and Amazon uses Alexa as a gateway to its shopping empire. What’s different about Meta’s approach is the sheer scale of WhatsApp and the absence of opting out of Meta AI. You can’t even turn off the chatbot.
There are fewer choices for users who prefer different assistants and fewer opportunities for competitors to reach them. Imagine if every email app banned third-party filters except the one made by the hosting company. This is roughly the model Meta is moving towards with WhatsApp.
But if Meta can win with a strategy of owning the chat, owning the assistant, owning the ecosystem, it will probably be worth it to its bottom line. WhatsApp will be Meta AI’s personal playground, and any other AI there will only last as long as the company chooses.
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