AI Telegram Bot for Business - Set Up in 5 Minutes

Many of your customers already use Telegram every day. An AI Telegram bot lets them ask your business a question there and get an answer in seconds, at any hour, from your own content. When a question needs a person, a live agent takes the conversation over and replies in the same Telegram chat.

What an AI Telegram Bot Is

A Telegram bot is a Telegram account run by software instead of a person. In ELIA Assistant, it's backed by the same AI assistant that answers customers on your website and on WhatsApp:

The AI answers first. It replies instantly from your knowledge base - FAQs, price lists, terms and your website content. When it doesn't know, it says so instead of making things up.
A live agent can take over. Conversations appear in Messages and Interactions in your dashboard. An agent takes over with the full history, and the reply arrives in the customer's Telegram chat.
One inbox for every channel. Telegram conversations sit next to web chat, WhatsApp and email, so your team works in one place.

How Your Business Will Use It

24/7 customer support. Opening hours, prices, delivery, bookings and returns are answered at night and on weekends, without anyone on duty.
Human help when it matters. Complaints and complex cases go to a live agent, and the customer doesn't repeat anything.
Meeting customers where they are. For customers who prefer Telegram to email or a web form, writing to you is as easy as writing to a friend.
One source of truth. Update the knowledge base once and the change applies to web, WhatsApp and Telegram at the same time.
A quick check for your team. Your colleagues can ask the same bot to see how it answers before a customer does. If an answer is missing, you know what to add to the knowledge base.

What You Need

An ELIA Assistant account with the administrator role.
A Telegram account on your phone or computer.
About 5 minutes. No developer, no server, no webhook configuration.

How to Create an AI Telegram Bot - Step by Step

1. Turn On Telegram in ELIA Assistant

In the app, open Configuration → Integrations and switch on Telegram. A Telegram tab appears.

2. Create a Bot with BotFather

In Telegram, search for @BotFather, Telegram's official tool for creating bots (it has a blue verified checkmark).
Send the message /newbot.
Enter a name for the bot. Customers see it in their chat list, so use your brand, for example Acme Support.
Enter a username ending in bot, for example acme_support_bot.
BotFather sends you a token like 123456789:AAH.... Copy it and treat it like a password.

3. Connect the Bot

In the Telegram tab, paste the token and click Connect. You'll see Telegram is connected as @your_bot. The webhook is set up automatically.

4. Share It with Your Customers

Your bot's address is t.me/your_bot. Put the link where customers look for contact options: your website, email signature, social profiles and order confirmations. Customers open it, tap Start and can ask away.

Tips for Good Answers

Answer quality depends on the knowledge base. The assistant only answers from what's in it. Use specific values, short sentences and a question-answer structure.
Set up handover. Configure agent working hours and new-interaction notifications so conversations the AI can't resolve reach a person quickly.
One bot per service. Telegram lets a bot be connected to only one service at a time. Create a dedicated bot for ELIA Assistant.
Tokens can be replaced. If a token leaks, generate a new one in BotFather (/revoke), paste it into the Telegram tab and click Reconnect.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can my customers talk to a person on Telegram? Yes. When the AI can't help or the customer asks for a person, a live agent takes the conversation over in the dashboard, with the full history. The agent's reply arrives in the customer's Telegram chat.

Is there a reply time limit like on WhatsApp? No. WhatsApp only allows free-form replies within 24 hours of the customer's last message; Telegram has no such limit for a chat the customer started.

Do I need a developer? No. You create the bot in Telegram and connect it by pasting one token.

Is there an extra cost for Telegram? Telegram bots are free. The Telegram channel is included in ELIA Assistant.

Which language does the bot reply in? The language of the question. Your knowledge base only needs to be in one language.

How do I turn the bot off? Click Disconnect in the Telegram tab. The assistant stops replying immediately.

Try It

Sign up for a free 7-day trial, upload your FAQ and connect a Telegram bot. In a few minutes your customers can start asking it questions.

Get an AI Telegram bot