How to Add an AI Assistant to Telegram (Step-by-Step)

Your AI assistant lives directly in Telegram – no apps to install, no browser tabs to open, no tools to switch between. Send a text or voice message, get an intelligent response back. Built on OpenClaw, an open-source AI agent framework, it has persistent memory, modular skills, and works seamlessly across all your messaging channels.

Here's how to connect it in under five minutes.

Once set up, your Telegram AI assistant can:

Your assistant is the same across all channels. Message it in Telegram now, continue the conversation in WhatsApp later – it remembers everything.

Step 1: Create Your Amplify Account

Go to getamplify.team and sign up. You'll pay the $9.99 monthly platform fee and add a minimum $3 usage deposit. The deposit covers actual AI usage – it never expires and you can top it up anytime.

Step 2: Open BotFather in Telegram

Open Telegram and search for @BotFather – this is Telegram's official bot-creation tool. It's verified with a blue checkmark. Start a chat with it.

Step 3: Create Your Bot

Send the /newbot command to BotFather. It will ask you for two things:

BotFather confirms creation and sends you a bot token.

Step 4: Copy the Bot Token

BotFather replies with a long string that looks like 123456789:ABCdefGHI-jklMNOpqrSTUvwxyz. This is your bot token. Copy it.

Go to your Amplify Dashboard → Channels → Telegram and paste the token in the Bot Token field.

Step 5: Enter Your User ID

Search for @userinfobot in Telegram and start a chat. Send it any message – it immediately replies with your numeric user ID (a number like 987654321).

Copy this number and paste it in the User ID field on the Dashboard.

Click Connect.

Step 6: Send Your First Message

Open a chat with your new bot in Telegram. Send any message – "Hello" is fine. You'll get an intelligent response within seconds. Your AI assistant is live.

1. Send a Voice Message

Hold the microphone button in Telegram and speak naturally. The assistant transcribes your voice message, understands the content, and responds. Perfect for when you're driving, walking, or cooking.

"Hey, remind me to send the proposal to Sarah by end of day Friday"

2. Summarize a Link

Paste any URL and ask for a summary:

"Summarize this in 3 bullet points: https://example.com/article"

The assistant reads the page and gives you the key points – no need to open the link yourself.

3. Check Your Calendar

After connecting Google Workspace from the Dashboard:

"What's on my calendar today?"

"Am I free Thursday at 2pm?"

"Create a meeting: Team sync, Monday 10am, 30 minutes"

4. Generate an Image

"Generate an image: a cozy home office with warm lighting and bookshelves"

The assistant creates an image and sends it right in the Telegram chat. You can request edits: "Make it more minimal" or "Add a window with a city view."

5. Set Up a Morning Briefing

Enable the Morning Briefing skill from Dashboard → Skills and set a schedule. Every morning, your assistant sends a Telegram message with:

Cost: about $0.01 per briefing.

Voice-first workflow. Telegram voice messages are the fastest way to interact with your assistant. Speak naturally – it understands context, follow-up questions, and nuanced requests. Many users never type at all.

Forward messages for context. Forward a message from another chat to your assistant and ask: "What should I reply to this?" or "Translate this to English." The assistant sees the forwarded content and responds accordingly.

Bot username matters. Choose a username you'll recognize in your chat list. You can't rename the bot's username later without creating a new one (display name can be changed anytime).

Cross-channel memory. Because Amplify runs on OpenClaw's agent architecture, your assistant shares memory across all connected channels. Start a conversation in Telegram, continue it in WhatsApp or Discord – full context preserved. No repetition needed.

Pin the chat. Long-press your bot's chat and pin it to the top of your Telegram chat list for instant access.

Group chats work too. Add the bot to a Telegram group. It responds when mentioned by username and stays quiet during normal conversation.

All costs include 7.5% service fee. A typical light user spends ~$12–15/month total. Your deposit never expires – quiet months cost less.

BYOK option: Connect your own API key and pay LLM costs directly. Your Amplify deposit then only covers non-LLM services (media, search, transcription).

Frequently Asked Questions