ChatGPT, Copilot and AI assistants on WhatsApp: what happened

ChatGPT, Microsoft Copilot and Perplexity left WhatsApp when Meta’s ban on general-purpose AI assistants reached existing providers on 15 January 2026. Only ChatGPT has announced a return: on 13 July 2026, OpenAI restored 1-800-ChatGPT for users in the European Economic Area (EEA), after a European Commission order. Outside the EEA, Italy, Brazil and Türkiye the ban still stands.

What happened to ChatGPT on WhatsApp, step by step?

ChatGPT’s WhatsApp story runs from a December 2024 launch to a July 2026 return, with a gap of about six months in between. The rule behind it is Meta’s WhatsApp Business Solution Terms: they bar AI providers from the WhatsApp Business Platform when the AI is the primary, rather than incidental or ancillary, thing they offer. Meta decides what counts, in its sole discretion.

The first rows come from the Italian competition authority’s December 2025 decision, which also records that OpenAI told it Italy had the highest average number of 1-800-ChatGPT users in the world. The leaving announcements are in TechCrunch’s report of 13 January 2026 and TechTimes of 27 November 2025. The regulators’ side, with all dates, is in WhatsApp’s AI chatbot ban: the rule and where it stands.

Which assistants left WhatsApp, and which came back?

Three big assistants left, and one has announced a return. The table shows what we could confirm on 19 October 2026.

The AGCM decision lists Luzia, Poke and Zapia among the smaller assistants present on WhatsApp. Meta told AI providers in January 2026 that they could keep serving users in Italy. We could not confirm whether 1-800-ChatGPT kept running for Italian numbers before July, because we could not read OpenAI’s own notice. In Brazil, Zapia’s CEO said on 9 October 2026 that its app now carries all of its usage, against more than 90 percent on WhatsApp when the rule was announced (Startups.com.br).

What happened to people’s chats when the assistants left?

TechTimes reported on 27 November 2025 that ChatGPT users could export their chat history, and that this was not an option for Copilot users. We could not find OpenAI’s, Microsoft’s or Perplexity’s own notices on what happens to history, and press reports disagree about Copilot, so check each assistant’s help page before relying on any of it.

For the return, Clubic reports that linking a ChatGPT account is optional and gives higher usage limits.

How did ChatGPT get back, and why only in Europe?

ChatGPT got back on WhatsApp because the European Commission ordered it, not because Meta changed its rule. On 9 June 2026 the Commission ordered interim measures: Meta must restore access for third-party general-purpose assistants on the terms that applied before 15 October 2025, free of charge, within five working days, until a final decision.

OpenAI restored the service on 13 July 2026, according to Clubic and TechTimes. It is free and needs no ChatGPT account. It covers the EU plus Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway, and the rollout depends on the country code of the WhatsApp number. The Commission’s case covers the EEA except Italy, which has its own order from the Italian authority.

Outside those markets Meta has not been compelled to bring assistants back. Meta’s pricing page for AI providers says general-purpose assistants are permitted only where Meta is “legally required to permit this use case”. It lists the EEA, Italy and Brazil, where a per-message charge still applies, and Türkiye since 15 October 2026. The Commission order is interim and Meta is appealing it, so the return could be reversed.

Where do people use these assistants now?

People use these assistants in their own apps, except ChatGPT in the EEA.

• ChatGPT: on WhatsApp for EEA numbers, and in the ChatGPT app and website everywhere.
• Copilot: Microsoft’s own apps.
• Perplexity: its own app and website.
• Meta AI: inside WhatsApp, for everyone.

What does this mean for people building AI agents?

Builders should read the ChatGPT episode as a lesson about owning the channel. OpenAI’s own planning document, quoted in the Italian decision, described WhatsApp as a way to reach new users before moving them to its app and as a counter to Meta’s distribution advantage. Even so, Meta removed OpenAI as it removed the smaller assistants.

Three practical points follow:

1. A policy can end your channel on a fixed date. The rule gave existing providers three months between 15 October 2025 and 15 January 2026.
2. European access comes from an order, not a promise. It is an interim measure under appeal. A product that depends on it needs a second channel.
3. Collect a contact you control. An email address or an app account lets you move users when a channel closes.

If your product is the assistant, the Business API is closed to you outside the EEA, Brazil and Türkiye. Is your AI bot allowed on the WhatsApp Business API? shows where your bot falls. Put an AI agent on WhatsApp: every option compares the other routes, and how to launch an AI companion on WhatsApp covers the companion case.

One of those routes is whasp: a real personal WhatsApp account on a cloud phone that whasp runs, with every message delivered to your webhook and one API call to reply. People write first, groups are not supported, and a banned number is replaced at no cost but its chats do not move. See pricing and the docs.