You can now text ChatGPT on WhatsApp but it's missing features that make it useful

OpenAI has just “exposed” ChatGPT’s phone number, and you can now text the AI chatbot on the Meta-owned platform WhatsApp.

You can now save +1-800-242-8478 in your contact, and then it’ll appear on your WhatsApp as “ChatGPT.” For folks in the US, you can even call the number (1-800-ChatGPT) and have a maximum of 15 minutes of conversation every month, which even works on ancient-looking landlines and flip phones.

But there’s a catch.

ChatGPT on WhatsApp is missing a few features that make the AI chatbot useful. For starters, it can not respond to media files (images, videos, etc.), and it’s not capable of accessing and analyzing documents within the chat. OpenAI also says that messaging ChatGPT on WhatsApp has its limit, though it still remains vague.

“For a fuller experience with access to more features like search, higher limits, and greater personalization, existing users should continue using ChatGPT directly through their accounts,” OpenAI says further.

As a Meta-owned platform, WhatsApp does have its own AI chatbot, the Meta AI. Unlike ChatGPT on WhatsApp which is still limited, Meta AI can actually process images, provide voice responses, edit photos, generate creative content, and answer questions about shared photos.

Available across Instagram DM and Facebook Messenger too, Meta AI is currently available in 43 countries and over a dozen languages, including Brazil, the UK, the Philippines, and more.

The Facebook parent company previously said that the AI tool has amassed nearly 600 million users worldwide, but with ChatGPT’s rollout on WhatsApp, that may change any time soon.