> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.agno.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Basic WhatsApp Agent

> Create a basic AI agent that integrates with WhatsApp Business API

## Code

```python cookbook/05_agent_os/interfaces/whatsapp/basic.py theme={null}
from agno.agent import Agent
from agno.db.sqlite import SqliteDb
from agno.models.openai import OpenAIChat
from agno.os.app import AgentOS
from agno.os.interfaces.whatsapp import Whatsapp

agent_db = SqliteDb(db_file="tmp/persistent_memory.db")
basic_agent = Agent(
    name="Basic Agent",
    model=OpenAIChat(id="gpt-4o"),
    db=agent_db,
    add_history_to_context=True,
    num_history_runs=3,
    add_datetime_to_context=True,
    markdown=True,
    instructions=[
        "You are chatting on WhatsApp. Keep responses conversational and natural.",
        "Structure your responses as separate short paragraphs separated by double newlines.",
    ],
)

agent_os = AgentOS(
    agents=[basic_agent],
    interfaces=[Whatsapp(agent=basic_agent)],
)
app = agent_os.get_app()

if __name__ == "__main__":
    agent_os.serve(app="basic:app", reload=True)
```

## Usage

<Steps>
  <Snippet file="create-venv-step.mdx" />

  <Step title="Set Environment Variables">
    ```bash theme={null}
    export WHATSAPP_ACCESS_TOKEN=your_access_token
    export WHATSAPP_PHONE_NUMBER_ID=your_phone_number_id
    export WHATSAPP_VERIFY_TOKEN=your_verify_token
    export WHATSAPP_SKIP_SIGNATURE_VALIDATION=true  # For local dev
    export OPENAI_API_KEY=your_openai_api_key
    ```

    See the [WhatsApp Bot setup guide](/deploy/interfaces/whatsapp/overview) for how to get these values from the [Meta Developer Dashboard](https://developers.facebook.com/apps/).
  </Step>

  <Step title="Install dependencies">
    ```bash theme={null}
    uv pip install -U agno openai
    ```
  </Step>

  <Step title="Run Example">
    ```bash theme={null}
    python cookbook/05_agent_os/interfaces/whatsapp/basic.py
    ```
  </Step>
</Steps>

## Key Features

* **WhatsApp Integration**: Responds to messages via the WhatsApp Business API
* **Conversation History**: Maintains context with last 3 interactions
* **Persistent Memory**: SQLite database for session storage
* **Session Reset**: Users can send `/new` to start a fresh conversation
* **Markdown Support**: Rich text formatting in messages