How to publish a Custom AI bot to SMS and WhatsApp?

One major limitation of a Custom AI bot or a GPT is that you can’t really add it to WhatsApp as a dedicated bot for business or personal use.

Here’s how you could achive this with Pmfm.ai:

Start by signing up at pmfm.ai
Once you have signed up, click on the “Create App” button
Fill out the form with the necessary details. You will need a name, image, AI model (GPT-4.1, Claude 4, Gemini Pro, etc.) and a prompt for your app. The design doesn’t matter in this case since the bot is for WhatsApp/SMS. There is no API key required unless you’re using an OpenAI Assistant. We don’t have to worry about the design because it’s not relevant in WhatsApp.
Click on “Create App” in the top right corner and wait for your app to appear in the dashboard. Once visible, click on “Launch” to make it live.
After launching, click on the “Publish” button under the status column, and select the “Continue with Twilio” option.
A popup will appear asking for Twilio SID, Auth Token, and Phone Number. We’ll get these credentials in the next steps. Create an account on Twilio and verify your phone number with OTP. Download and save the Recovery Code for account security.
On Twilio, click on “My First Twilio Account” and copy your Account SID and Auth Token.
Go back to your Pmfm.ai dashboard and paste these credentials in the along with your mobile number in the exact format shown. Click “Publish.”
Save the webhook URL provided in the popup after publishing.
In Twilio, go to Messaging → Try It Out → Send a WhatsApp Message. In Sandbox Settings, paste your webhook URL where it says “When a message comes in” box, keep Method as POST, and save.
Scan the QR code to test your bot. This way, you can test your WhatsApp bot before deploying it to production.
For moving to production scenarios, you will need to upgrade your account through the upgrade link (blue text, green background). When you will click on it, you will be prompted to create your customer profile.
Complete verification: Enter legal name, select country, verify Government ID (front and back photos), and add payment details.
Once completed, you can see your billing overview under the Manage Billing section.
From the left menu, Go to Phone Numbers → Manage → Buy a number. Choose and purchase a number of your liking.
Review and buy the number.
From the left menu again, Navigate to Messaging → Senders → WhatsApp Senders and click “Get Started.”
Select “Twilio Phone Number” option and enter your purchased number. Continue with Facebook login.
After logging in you will be asked about your Business info. Fill out the Business info and WhatsApp business display name and category.
Enter your Twilio phone number for verification and complete the OTP process shown in the window.
Return to WhatsApp Senders, click your listed number, and paste the Pmfm.ai webhook URL in “Webhook URL for incoming messages.” Scroll down and click on Update WhatsApp Sender.