What you can do with the xAI Grok integration
Run a Grok chatbot for your business on WhatsApp, Instagram, Messenger, TikTok, Telegram and website live chat. Connect your xAI API key to Whautomate and Grok answers customer messages, books appointments and hands off to your team from one inbox.
Searching for "Grok on WhatsApp" turns up plenty of look-alike numbers and unofficial bots. xAI does not run a Grok number for businesses. The legitimate way to put Grok in front of your customers is through the official WhatsApp Business Platform, Instagram and TikTok messaging APIs with your own xAI key, which is exactly what this integration does.
Grok brings a direct, conversational style and one capability no other provider here has: live X (Twitter) search. Brands that live on X can let Grok check what is being said right now, alongside web search and your own knowledge base.
Key features
Grok WhatsApp bot
Grok replies to WhatsApp messages on your own business number via the official Cloud API, day and night.
X (Twitter) search
Optionally let Grok search X in real time, useful for launches, live events, drops and status updates.
Web search
Grok can search the web for answers your documents do not cover.
Knowledge base collections
Upload your FAQs and policies to an xAI collection so Grok answers from your facts. Requires an xAI management key (see setup).
Understands images
Customers can send photos and screenshots and Grok reads them before replying.
Books appointments and classes
Grok can suggest available slots, book, reschedule or cancel appointments and book class spots using built-in tools.
Instagram, Messenger and TikTok
One Grok assistant for Instagram DMs, Messenger and TikTok messages (TikTok for business accounts outside the US and Europe).
Human handoff
Grok routes conversations to your team through the unassigned queue or round-robin assignment.
Grok vs Groq: which one is this?
They are different companies. Grok is the family of AI models from xAI, and it is what this integration connects. Groq (with a q) is a company that sells fast inference hardware and hosts open models. If a tutorial asks you for a Groq key, it is not talking about Grok.
Why Grok needs two keys for a knowledge base
xAI serves knowledge base collections from a separate management API that does not accept the normal API key. So the Grok integration has two fields:
- API key (required) - powers the replies.
- Management key (optional) - only needed for the knowledge base. Create it in the xAI Console under Settings → Management Keys with the Collections and Files scopes (read and write).
Without a management key the bot still replies, it just cannot search your uploaded documents. Voice notes are not transcribed with Grok; if customers send many voice notes, use OpenAI or Gemini for that automation step.
Which Grok model should you use?
Whautomate loads the model list live from your xAI account, so new Grok releases appear as soon as your key can use them. The default is Grok 4. Use the fastest Grok variant for routine support and the flagship model for complex conversations. You pay xAI directly for tokens.
Is a Grok bot allowed on WhatsApp in 2026?
Yes, when the bot serves your own customers. Since 15 January 2026 Meta's WhatsApp Business Solution Terms stop AI providers from offering general-purpose AI assistants on the WhatsApp Business Platform when the AI itself is the main product. That is why public "chat with an AI" numbers were switched off.
A Grok-powered assistant that answers questions about your services, books appointments, qualifies leads and hands off to your team is a business bot: the AI supports your business rather than being the product. That use stays allowed, and it runs on the official WhatsApp Business Platform through Whautomate as a Meta Business Partner, not on the unofficial WhatsApp Web or personal-number scripts that get numbers banned.
Good practice: keep the bot's instructions focused on your business, let customers reach a human, and do not use customer conversations to train a model.
OpenAI vs Claude vs Gemini vs Grok on Whautomate
All four providers run the same chatbot engine, the same booking and handoff tools and the same channels. Where they differ is how they read your documents and whether they understand voice notes:
| Capability | OpenAI | Claude | Gemini | Grok (this page) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Knowledge base | Vector search over your files | Files attached in full to each reply (up to 10, keep them focused) | Vector search, text and image embeddings | Vector search (needs an xAI management key) |
| Voice notes from customers | Transcribed | Not supported, replies to the text | Transcribed | Not supported, replies to the text |
| Images from customers | Understood | Understood | Understood | Understood |
| Web search | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes, plus X (Twitter) search |
| Book appointments and classes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Hand off to a human | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Channels | WhatsApp, Instagram, Messenger, TikTok, Telegram, website live chat | |||
You are not locked in. Connect more than one key and choose the provider on each AI step of an automation, for example a fast, low-cost model for first replies and a stronger model for sales conversations.
Sister product
Add voice calls next to your Grok assistant
Chat covers most questions. For the customers who would rather call your WhatsApp number, add WhautoVoice.
WhautoVoice is the voice platform built by the Whautomate team. Link it from Integrations and every client record and inbox chat gets a call button, while incoming WhatsApp calls are answered by a voice bot, a queue, a person or an IVR menu.
- Answer and place WhatsApp calls from the same number you chat on
- Voice bot that answers, takes a message or books an appointment
- Call recordings, transcripts and summaries on the client record
- Choose the region where calls and recordings are stored
How to connect xAI Grok to Whautomate
Create xAI keys
In the xAI Console create an API key, and optionally a management key with Collections and Files scopes for the knowledge base.
Connect Grok
In Whautomate go to Integrations → xAI (Grok), open the Configuration tab and paste the key(s).
Add knowledge
Upload FAQs and policies to a collection so Grok answers from your content.
Turn it on
Add an AI reply step for WhatsApp, Instagram, Messenger, TikTok, Telegram or live chat, choose Grok, and test before going live.
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Frequently asked questions
Is Grok on WhatsApp?
xAI does not offer an official Grok number that businesses can use, so be careful with numbers claiming to be Grok. To use Grok with your customers on WhatsApp, connect your xAI API key to a WhatsApp Business Platform provider like Whautomate.
Can I use the Grok API for a customer service chatbot?
Yes. Paste your xAI API key under Integrations → xAI (Grok), add an AI reply step to your automation and pick Grok. It can answer questions, book appointments and hand chats to your team.
Is Grok the same as Groq?
No. Grok is xAI's model family. Groq is a separate inference company. This integration uses Grok through the xAI API.
What is the xAI management key for?
Only for the knowledge base. xAI stores collections behind a management API that rejects the normal key. Without it the bot still replies but cannot search your documents.
Does Grok understand voice notes?
No. With Grok selected, voice notes are answered using any text in the message. OpenAI and Gemini both transcribe voice notes if you need that.
How much does it cost?
The integration is included in your Whautomate plan. You pay xAI for API tokens and Meta for WhatsApp template messages you send.
Can I mix Grok with other AI models?
Yes. Connect OpenAI (ChatGPT), Anthropic Claude or Google Gemini too and pick the provider per automation step.