Tutorial: Building your own AI assistant on WhatsApp

This guide is the result of several months of experimentation. The goal: have an AI assistant available 24/7 directly in WhatsApp, capable of answering my questions, managing my tasks, and interacting with my business tools. Without paying $200/month for a SaaS.

Why WhatsApp?

It's the most natural interface that exists. No app to open, no login. One message, one reply. I already use it 50 times a day — so my assistant should live there too.

The Architecture in a Nutshell

• Messaging layer: Baileys (open-source Node.js library for WhatsApp Web)
• AI brain: Claude (Anthropic) via API — reasoning, contextual memory, writing
• Persistent memory: Markdown files + local semantic search
• Actions: Shell scripts to interact with APIs (calendar, email, web)
• Hosting: A simple Mac mini running 24/7

The Key Steps

1. Connect Baileys to your WhatsApp account (QR code scan)
2. Set up the message router (what gets filtered, what gets a reply)
3. Integrate the Claude API with a well-designed system prompt
4. Add memory: each conversation is summarized and stored
5. Plug in tools: what your assistant can actually do in the real world

What It Looks Like in Practice

I send "Remind me in 20 minutes to call Nina" — it does it. I send a YouTube link — it summarizes the video. I ask a question about my business — it searches its memory and replies with context.

The full guide with commented source code, exact prompts, and step-by-step configuration is coming soon. Sign up to be notified first.