"OpenAI's ChatGPT and Microsoft's Copilot are both leaving WhatsApp thanks to upcoming changes to the messaging app's terms of service that will prohibit using it to distribute AI chatbots not made by Meta. OpenAI announced its planned departure a few weeks ago, with Microsoft following it this week. Both companies attributed the departures to Meta's new terms of service for WhatsApp Business Solution, which come into effect on January 15th, 2026, and said the chatbots will remain accessible in WhatsApp until that date."
"WhatsApp announced the update to its terms in October, banning AI companies from using its business API as a distribution platform for chatbots. Other companies will still be permitted to use WhatsApp for customer service or support chatbots, with the terms only prohibiting cases where the AI itself is the product - a simple way of stopping Meta's AI rivals using its own platform to reach customers."
""The purpose of the WhatsApp Business API is to help businesses provide customer support and send relevant updates," an anonymous Meta spokesperson told TechCrunch at the time. "Our focus is on supporting the tens of thousands of businesses who are building these experiences on WhatsApp." The change means that other third-party AI chatbots, including Perplexity, are likely to announce departures from WhatsApp soon, leaving Meta AI the only option available from next January."
OpenAI's ChatGPT and Microsoft's Copilot will leave WhatsApp because Meta's updated WhatsApp Business Solution terms prohibit using the platform to distribute AI chatbots not made by Meta. The policy change takes effect January 15, 2026, and the chatbots will remain accessible on WhatsApp until that date. ChatGPT users can link accounts to carry over chat history; Copilot users do not have that option. WhatsApp's update bans AI companies from using its business API as a distribution platform while still allowing customer-service or support bots. Third-party chatbots, including Perplexity, are likely to depart, leaving Meta AI as the only option next January.
Read at The Verge
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