Google's Gemini models can sit behind your WhatsApp Business number and answer customer questions around the clock. Connect WhatsApp to Social Intents, route it to a chat widget, select a Gemini model, add your Google AI API key, and train it on your business content.
Gemini is a bring your own key provider. You supply a Google AI API key and Google bills you directly, which gives you control over model choice and spend. If you'd rather not manage a key, the ChatGPT guide covers models included in your plan.
What This Integration Does
Customers message your business number on WhatsApp. Gemini answers from the knowledge you trained it on, and your team takes over in the Social Intents Inbox or in Microsoft Teams, Slack or Google Chat when a person is needed.
Before You Start
- A plan that includes WhatsApp: the free trial, Basic, Pro or Business.
- A chat widget for the team you want to connect. See Set Up Your First Chat Widget.
- A Google AI API key. Gemini has no included models, so this is required.
- Admin access to the Meta business portfolio you will connect, a number that can receive an SMS or voice call, and a payment card for WhatsApp Manager.
- A number that isn't active on personal WhatsApp or with another provider. A WhatsApp Business app number can stay in the app with coexistence.
- Current FAQs, product documentation and policies for the assistant to learn from.
Connecting WhatsApp to Gemini
1. Get Your Google AI API Key
Create a key in Google AI Studio and keep it safe. Usage bills to you, not to Social Intents, so treat it like any other credential and rotate it if it's ever exposed.
2. Connect Your WhatsApp Business Number
Go to Integrations, click Connect on the WhatsApp card, read the Before you continue to Meta checklist and click Continue to Meta. In Meta's window, choose your business portfolio and WhatsApp Business Account and verify the number (or scan a QR code to keep the WhatsApp Business app; see coexistence). When you're back, work through the Finish setup checklist, starting with a payment method in WhatsApp Manager. Full detail is in Setting Up WhatsApp Business.
3. Route the Number to a Chat Widget
Go to Settings > Channels and expand WhatsApp. Under WhatsApp numbers, choose the widget for your number and click Save channel settings. The AI agent, knowledge and escalation rules all come from that widget. Running more than one number? See Multiple WhatsApp Numbers.
4. Select a Gemini Model and Add Your Key
Open Chat Widgets > your widget > AI Agent, choose Gemini as the provider, paste your key in API key and pick a model:
| Model | Notes |
|---|---|
| Gemini 3 Pro (preview) | Google's most capable model, for complex, multi-part questions. |
| Gemini 3 Flash (preview) | Fast with strong quality. |
| Gemini 2.5 Pro | Most capable generally available model. |
| Gemini 2.5 Flash and 2.5 Flash Lite | Fast and low cost; suit high-volume support with short answers. |
| Gemini 2.0 Flash | Previous generation. |
Google Cloud customers can also choose the Vertex AI provider for Gemini 2.5 and 2.0 models. Start with a Flash model and move up only if answer quality on real conversations warrants it.
5. Train It on Your Business
Add your website, help center, PDFs and spreadsheets under Data sources on the widget's AI Agent tab, and keep sources tight and current. See Training Your Chatbot on Content.
Then write your instructions: short paragraphs, no tables, and a clear next step in every reply, because WhatsApp shows plain text on a phone. See Writing System Instructions.
6. Set Up Human Handoff
On the widget's Handoff tab, decide when Gemini should stop and a person should take over: an explicit request for a human, billing and cancellation topics, complaints, or questions it can't answer from your content. See Escalation to Human Agents.
7. Test the Whole Path
Message the business number from a real phone. Check the answer is accurate, that escalation fires, and that the handoff lands in the right Inbox or channel. Ask something the assistant has no source for and check it offers a person instead of guessing.
WhatsApp Session Rules and Costs
When a customer messages you, you have 24 hours to reply with normal messages. Outside that window you can only send an approved template. See WhatsApp Templates, Media & Sessions.
Budget for three things: your Social Intents plan, your Google AI usage billed to your API key, and Meta's charges. Meta prices WhatsApp per delivered message, by category and country, and bills your WhatsApp Business Account directly. Since October 1, 2026, replies inside the 24-hour customer service window, including AI replies, are free for the first 1,000 service messages per business number each month, then charged at a per-country rate.
Troubleshooting
The number connected but no messages arrive. Check the number has a widget in Settings > Channels > WhatsApp, and that the Finish setup checklist shows the number connected. See WhatsApp Setup Troubleshooting.
Messages arrive but the AI never answers. Confirm the AI agent is on for that widget and a Gemini model and key are saved.
Authentication or quota errors. Re-enter your Google AI API key and check the key is active and its project has quota and billing in Google AI Studio. An exhausted quota stops answers even when everything in Social Intents is set up correctly.
The AI answers, but badly. Check which sources are trained, read the transcript, and tighten your instructions before moving to a larger model.
Handoffs go nowhere. Verify the escalation destination and that someone is monitoring it. See Troubleshooting Missed Chats.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need a Google AI API key to use Gemini?
Yes. Gemini has no included models. Create a key in Google AI Studio, paste it on the AI Agent tab, and Google bills you directly. For an option with no key, use ChatGPT, where GPT-6 Luna, GPT-5.6 Luna, GPT-4o and GPT-4o Mini are included.
Which plan do I need for WhatsApp?
WhatsApp is available on Basic and above, and during the free trial. Basic includes one WhatsApp number, Pro five and Business ten. See Plans, Billing and Upgrades.
How much does Gemini usage cost?
Google sets the rates and bills your key, so cost depends on the model and your volume. This is separate from your Social Intents plan and Meta's WhatsApp charges.
Can I keep using WhatsApp on my phone with the same number?
Yes, if the number is in the WhatsApp Business app. Use coexistence during signup.
Can a human take over mid conversation?
Yes. When escalation fires, or an agent joins, the AI steps back and your team replies from the Inbox or your team platform. The customer stays in the same WhatsApp thread.
Can I use Gemini on WhatsApp and a different model on my website?
Yes. Model choice is per widget.