# How to connect WhatsApp Business to Grok Bot (no API keys) > Connect WhatsApp Business to Grok Bot with ClawLink in one click — 17 tools your AI agent can call from chat via hosted OAuth. No API keys, no manual setup. Web version: https://claw-link.dev/grokbot/whatsapp Grok Bot runs on its own cloud computer, so most WhatsApp Business guides send you to register an OAuth app and paste keys into a sandbox that resets. ClawLink gives Grok Bot a more practical WhatsApp Business setup: it runs one CLI command, you approve once in the browser, and Grok Bot can call real WhatsApp Business actions from chat with no auth, token refresh, or tool wiring to build yourself. **Start here — paste this into Grok Bot to set up ClawLink:** > Set up ClawLink for me and tell me when it's ready. > 1. Pair this machine. It prints an approval link, so show me the link and stop, don't wait: `npx -y @useclawlink/cli login` > 2. I'll approve it in my browser, then reply "approved". > 3. When I say approved, connect the app: `npx -y @useclawlink/cli connect whatsapp` > 4. Then run `npx -y @useclawlink/cli whoami` and tell me whether ClawLink is ready. ## Setup It takes three steps to connect Grok Bot to WhatsApp Business. 1. **Pair from the terminal** — ask Grok Bot to run `npx -y @useclawlink/cli login` and approve the link it prints. 2. **Connect WhatsApp Business** — `npx -y @useclawlink/cli connect whatsapp`, then approve in the browser. 3. **Use it from chat** — ask Grok Bot in plain English. **The same CLI works from any agent with shell access:** ```bash npx -y @useclawlink/cli login # sign in via browser — no API key to paste npx -y @useclawlink/cli connect whatsapp # connect WhatsApp Business (browser OAuth) npx -y @useclawlink/cli actions whatsapp # list available actions npx -y @useclawlink/cli run whatsapp --input '' # execute (add --confirm for writes) ``` ### Install by command The prompt above does all of this. By hand, it is two commands Grok Bot runs in its own terminal, and one browser approval: ```bash npx -y @useclawlink/cli login # prints an approval link, approve it in your browser npx -y @useclawlink/cli connect whatsapp ``` Pair once and it sticks: the key is written to ~/.clawlink/credentials.json inside Grok Bot's sandbox, so it survives between sessions. Prefer native tools over shell commands? Add `https://claw-link.dev/api/mcp` as a custom connector at grok.com/connectors and approve the ClawLink sign-in. Same account, no CLI. Verify the connection by asking Grok Bot: > Create it in WhatsApp Business for me, then confirm the important fields before you finish. ### Using a different agent? The CLI above is not specific to Grok Bot. Claude Code, Cursor, Codex, or any agent that can run a shell command pairs with the same ClawLink account the same way: ```bash npx -y @useclawlink/cli login ``` `login` opens the same browser approval and stores a credential locally. Once WhatsApp Business is connected in the dashboard, that agent calls the same 17 WhatsApp Business tools over MCP. Full setup for MCP clients and shell agents: [connect apps to any AI agent](https://claw-link.dev/learn/connect-apps-to-any-ai-agent). ## WhatsApp Business MCP for Grok Bot Looking for a WhatsApp Business MCP server for Grok Bot? ClawLink connects WhatsApp Business to Grok Bot and exposes 17 WhatsApp Business tools your agent can call over [MCP](https://claw-link.dev/learn/what-is-an-mcp-server), with [hosted auth](https://claw-link.dev/learn/oauth-for-ai-agents) and nothing to run or maintain yourself. Using a different agent? The [OpenClaw WhatsApp Business integration](https://claw-link.dev/openclaw/whatsapp) and the [Hermes WhatsApp Business integration](https://claw-link.dev/hermes/whatsapp) connect the same ClawLink account the same way. ## What the Grok Bot WhatsApp Business integration can do 17 WhatsApp Business tools are ready for Grok Bot once the account is connected. The 16 below are the ones people reach for most; your agent can call all 17. ### 16 of 17 WhatsApp Business tools for Grok Bot | Tool | What it does | |---|---| | **Create message template** `whatsapp_create_message_template` | Create a new message template for the WhatsApp Business Account. Templates must be approved by WhatsApp before they can be used. | | **Get business profile** `whatsapp_get_business_profile` | Get the business profile information for a WhatsApp Business phone number. This includes business details like description, address, website, and contact info. | | **Get media info** `whatsapp_get_media_info` | Get metadata and download URL for uploaded WhatsApp media. Returns media ID, download URL (valid for 5 minutes), MIME type, SHA256 hash, and file size. | | **Get message templates** `whatsapp_get_message_templates` | Get all message templates for the WhatsApp Business Account. Templates are required for sending messages outside the 24-hour window and for marketing/utility messages. | | **Get phone number** `whatsapp_get_phone_number` | Retrieve detailed information about a specific WhatsApp Business phone number. | | **Get phone numbers** `whatsapp_get_phone_numbers` | Retrieve all phone numbers registered to your WhatsApp Business Account. Returns phone number IDs, display numbers, verification status, quality ratings, and messaging throughput limits. | | **Get template status** `whatsapp_get_template_status` | Get the status and details of a specific message template. This is useful for checking if a template has been approved, rejected, or is still pending review. | | **Send contacts** `whatsapp_send_contacts` | Send contacts WhatsApp number. Note: The message will be delivered to the recipient only if they have initiated a conversation first. | | **Send interactive buttons** `whatsapp_send_interactive_buttons` | Send an interactive button message with up to 3 reply buttons to a WhatsApp user. Interactive button messages allow recipients to quickly respond by tapping predefined buttons. | | **Send interactive list** `whatsapp_send_interactive_list` | Send an interactive list message to a WhatsApp number. List messages display a menu of options organized into sections. Users tap a button to view the list and select one option. | | **Send location** `whatsapp_send_location` | Send a location message with coordinates, name, and address to a WhatsApp user. This action allows you to share location information through WhatsApp Business API. | | **Send media** `whatsapp_send_media` | Send a media message to a WhatsApp number | | **Send media by ID** `whatsapp_send_media_by_id` | Send media using a media ID from previously uploaded media | | **Send message** `whatsapp_send_message` | Send a text message to a WhatsApp user | | **Send template message** `whatsapp_send_template_message` | Send a template message to a WhatsApp number | | **Upload media** `whatsapp_upload_media` | Upload media files (images, videos, audio, documents, stickers) to WhatsApp servers | ## Example prompts **Create Message Template** > Create it in WhatsApp Business for me, then confirm the important fields before you finish. **Get Business Profile** > Pull the relevant data from WhatsApp Business, summarize it in plain English, and point out anything that needs attention. **Get Media Info** > Pull the relevant data from WhatsApp Business, summarize it in plain English, and point out anything that needs attention. **Get Message Templates** > Pull the relevant data from WhatsApp Business, summarize it in plain English, and point out anything that needs attention. ## ClawLink vs. building it yourself The alternative to ClawLink is usually manual OAuth app setup plus your own token handling, permission troubleshooting, and tool plumbing for Grok Bot. That is fine if you want to build and maintain the integration yourself. Most teams just want WhatsApp Business working from chat. | | Manual | ClawLink | |---|---|---| | **Connection flow** | Register a WhatsApp Business app, configure redirect URLs, manage consent details, and reconnect users when auth settings drift. | Users connect WhatsApp Business through the hosted browser flow and ClawLink keeps the token lifecycle out of your app code. | | **Ongoing maintenance** | You own refresh logic, permission debugging, environment config, and every provider-specific edge case for WhatsApp Business. | ClawLink handles the repetitive integration plumbing so your team can focus on the workflow instead of the infrastructure. | | **Agent usability** | You still need to expose the right WhatsApp Business actions to the runtime in a format your agent can reliably use. | 17 tools for WhatsApp Business are already exposed through ClawLink, so the agent can read and act from chat immediately. | ## ClawLink vs. Composio Composio also exposes WhatsApp Business to AI agents. It is developer infrastructure: Python and TypeScript SDKs, an MCP server, and a catalog past 1,000 apps, aimed at teams shipping agent products. ClawLink is built for Grok Bot users instead. You install the plugin once, connect WhatsApp Business in the browser, and the 17 tools above work from chat. There is no SDK, no config file, and no API key handling. Choosing between them? Read the full [Composio alternatives](https://claw-link.dev/hub/composio-alternatives) comparison. ### Grok Bot says it cannot add ClawLink as an MCP server Grok Bot only attaches MCP servers that are reachable over the public internet, so a local stdio server is refused. You do not need one. Ask Grok Bot to run `npx -y @useclawlink/cli login` in its terminal instead. The CLI is a shell command, not an MCP server. If you would rather have native tools, add `https://claw-link.dev/api/mcp` as a custom connector at grok.com/connectors and approve the ClawLink sign-in. ### Connection succeeds but no tools appear Reconnect WhatsApp Business from the dashboard, then start a fresh chat if the runtime still has the old tool catalog loaded. ### "Tool schema not loaded yet" error when calling WhatsApp Business tools WhatsApp Business tool schemas load on demand the first time a tool runs and are cached after that, so this error usually clears on its own: wait a few seconds and retry the same request. If every WhatsApp Business call keeps failing with it in a fresh chat, reconnect from the dashboard, and contact support if it still persists — that pattern points to a configuration problem on our side, not something you can fix by reconnecting again. ### WhatsApp Business returns 403 or "permission denied" on one action while others work Two usual causes. The connected account may not have access to the specific workspace, inbox, store, or project in the request — check that first. If access looks right, the agent may have sent a placeholder value (like "YOUR_ID" or an example id from documentation) instead of a real one: ask it to run a list or search tool first, then retry the action with a real id from those results. Most failures at this stage are one of these two, not ClawLink bugs. ### OAuth finished in the browser but the account is still missing Try reconnecting WhatsApp Business and complete the consent flow in the same browser session. Partial OAuth approvals or switching accounts mid-flow can leave the connection incomplete. ### Is there a Grok Bot WhatsApp Business integration? Yes. ClawLink is the fastest way to connect Grok Bot to WhatsApp Business: link your WhatsApp Business account once in the browser and Grok Bot can call the WhatsApp Business API through 17 ready-made tools — no custom code or token handling. ### How do I connect WhatsApp Business to Grok Bot with ClawLink? Ask Grok Bot to run `npx -y @useclawlink/cli login` in its terminal and approve the link it prints, then `npx -y @useclawlink/cli connect whatsapp` to authorize WhatsApp Business. Grok Bot calls the tools from the next message, and the pairing persists in its sandbox, so this is a one-time step: no config files or API keys to manage. ### How long does it take to connect WhatsApp Business to Grok Bot? About two minutes. Sign in, click Connect next to WhatsApp Business in the dashboard, authenticate, and Grok Bot can use it from the next chat message. ### Why use ClawLink instead of wiring WhatsApp Business up myself? The alternative to ClawLink is usually manual OAuth app setup plus your own token handling, permission troubleshooting, and tool plumbing for Grok Bot. That is fine if you want to build and maintain the integration yourself. Most teams just want WhatsApp Business working from chat. ### Grok Bot says it cannot add ClawLink as an MCP server Grok Bot only attaches MCP servers that are reachable over the public internet, so a local stdio server is refused. You do not need one. Ask Grok Bot to run `npx -y @useclawlink/cli login` in its terminal instead. The CLI is a shell command, not an MCP server. If you would rather have native tools, add `https://claw-link.dev/api/mcp` as a custom connector at grok.com/connectors and approve the ClawLink sign-in. ## Related - [SendGrid](https://claw-link.dev/grokbot/sendgrid) — Deliver transactional and marketing emails - [Grok Bot Dialpad integration](https://claw-link.dev/grokbot/dialpad) — Business phone, messaging, and video conferencing - [Connect Discord Bot](https://claw-link.dev/grokbot/discord-bot) — Automate Discord server actions with bot-specific permissions