OpenAI has officially announced that its popular AI chatbot will no longer be available on WhatsApp starting January 15, 2026. In a major policy shift, WhatsApp, owned by Meta Platforms, have mentioned this change in WhatsApp’s policies and terms. Meta has made it clear that the Chatbot will not be available from Next January. Now, users are a bit confused about what changes might occur on their phones and chats. Is the new change good news or bad news for them? Here you will get a clear picture of what changes might occur in your chats starting January 15, 2026.
Will Your WhatsApp Work If Meta Shuts Down ChatGPT?
Of course, your WhatsApp will be working perfectly, as it doesn’t require any additional app to store anything. However, the chat history on ChatGPT will be lost as it won’t be working in WhatsApp from January 2026. The best way to retain the chat history is to link your mobile number to Chat GPT. The company has advised users to move their chat history from WhatsApp to the ChatGPT app. These apps have extra features like voice chat, research tools, and file sharing — things that WhatsApp does not offer.
How to retain Chats- A step-by-step guide
- To keep their old WhatsApp chat history, users can link their phone number to their ChatGPT account
- They can do this by visiting the 1-800-ChatGPT contact on WhatsApp and clicking the link given there
- After linking, users will be able to see their old messages inside ChatGPT’s chat history
- But OpenAI warned that after the given deadline, WhatsApp chats will not move automatically because WhatsApp does not allow exporting chats to other platforms
- The OpenAI chatbot will continue to be available on WhatsApp until January 15, 2026
- OpenAI also plans to send reminders to users ahead of the transition
WhatsApp’s Statement
“Providers and developers of artificial intelligence or machine learning technologies, including but not limited to large language models, generative artificial intelligence platforms, general-purpose artificial intelligence assistants, or similar technologies as determined by Meta in its sole discretion (“AI Providers”), are strictly prohibited from accessing or using the WhatsApp Business Solution, whether directly or indirectly, for the purposes of providing, delivering, offering, selling, or otherwise making available such technologies when such technologies are the primary (rather than incidental or ancillary) functionality being made available for use, as determined by Meta in its sole discretion,” WhatsApp stated in its updated terms and conditions.
