How a WhatsApp AI employee is set up and run
Written for someone deciding whether this is worth doing. It covers what actually has to happen, what it depends on, and the parts nobody controls.
Last updated 10 September 2026
What an AI employee is, precisely
It is a configured worker, not a reply template. It reads what a customer wrote, works out what they are asking, asks back for whatever is missing, does something about it — books a slot, writes a record, alerts a person — and hands over when the next step needs judgement.
The distinction that matters: a keyword rule matches text, and breaks the moment somebody phrases it differently. This reads intent, so “is the 3BHK still there” and “do you have anything with three bedrooms” reach the same place.
The four things that have to exist
| What | Who provides it |
|---|---|
| A Meta Business account | You. It holds the number and receives Meta's bill. |
| A phone number not on the consumer app | You. See the questions below. |
| A Business Solution Provider connection | Connected during onboarding. |
| The configuration itself | Set from your answers at onboarding. |
How setup runs
Four stages. The first is the one with a queue in it, and it is worth starting before the rest is decided.
- Number registration and business verification with Meta. Meta's timelines are Meta's, and no vendor can shorten them.
- Connecting the number to the platform through a Business Solution Provider.
- Configuration: what it answers, what it asks back, what it books, and where it stops.
- A quiet period on real messages, correcting what it gets wrong before it carries the whole load.
Configuration is where the value is
Four decisions shape what your AI employee does, and all four are yours to make:
- What it may answer without asking anyone. Anything you would be comfortable seeing in writing without review.
- What it must ask back. The two or three answers that change what happens next — the monthly bill for a rooftop, the budget and locality for a flat.
- What it may do. Book against a real calendar, write a lead record, alert a person on Telegram.
- Where it stops. Price negotiation, anything clinical, anything requiring professional advice.
Getting the handover line right
This is the decision people get wrong, in both directions. Draw it too tight and every conversation reaches a human, which is the situation you were trying to leave. Draw it too loose and it answers something it should not have.
A workable test: if getting it wrong costs money, reputation or someone’s health, a person decides. Everything before that point — the questions asked on the way to the decision — is exactly what an AI employee should be carrying.
What to prepare before starting
Configuration goes as fast as your answers are settled. These are worth writing down first:
- The twenty questions you actually get asked most, with the answers you would be happy to send in writing.
- The two or three things you need to know from every enquiry before it is worth a person's time.
- Who gets alerted, and how — one person, or a team.
- What counts as urgent, and what should happen when it is.
- Which calendar the bookings land in.
What it does not do
- It does not send bulk or unsolicited messages. That is against Meta's policy and it puts the number at risk.
- It does not replace the person who closes. It gets that person a conversation worth having.
- It does not decide anything you have not configured it to decide.
- It does not remove your responsibility for what is sent from your number.
Questions
Do I need a new phone number?
Usually yes, or at least a number that is not already active on the WhatsApp consumer app. A number can be registered on the WhatsApp Business Platform or on the ordinary app, not both. Businesses often keep the number staff use on their phones and connect a second one to the platform.
Who owns the WhatsApp account?
Your business does. The number is registered under your own Meta Business account, and the conversation charges are billed to that account by Meta directly. Exatyl does not sit between you and Meta on billing.
What does Meta charge?
Meta sets its own conversation rates and bills your Meta account for them. Those rates are Meta's to publish and change, so check them there rather than relying on a figure quoted anywhere else. Nothing is added on top by Exatyl.
Can a customer tell they are talking to an AI?
That is your decision and it belongs in the configuration. Being straightforward about it tends to work better than not, and it makes the handover to a person read as an escalation rather than a switch of personality.
What happens when it does not know something?
It hands over rather than guesses. An AI employee that invents an answer about your pricing or your availability costs more than one that says a colleague will confirm.
How long does setup take?
The part that depends on Meta — number registration and business verification — is the slow and unpredictable part, and it is outside anybody's control. The configuration itself depends on how settled your answers already are.
Next
What this looks like in a particular trade is on the industry pages — solar, real estate, healthcare, automotive and professional firms. Pricing is on the homepage.
Meta’s rates, policies and verification timelines are set by Meta and change. Nothing on this page quotes them, deliberately — check Meta’s own documentation for current figures.