WhatsApp Fact-Checking Bot with Perplexity AI and Twilio

✅💬Build Your Own WhatsApp Fact-Checking Bot with AI

Tired of misinformation spreading on WhatsApp? 🤨 This workflow transforms your n8n instance into a powerful, automated fact-checking bot! Send any news, claim, or question to a designated WhatsApp number, and this bot will use AI to research it, provide a verdict, and send back a summary with direct source links.

Fight fake news with the power of automation and AI! 🚀

How it works ⚙️

This workflow uses a simple but powerful three-step process:

📬 WhatsApp Gateway (Webhook node): This is the front door. The workflow starts when the Webhook node receives an incoming message from a user via a Twilio WhatsApp number. 🕵️ The Digital Detective (Perplexity node): The user's message is sent to the Perplexity node. Here, a powerful AI model, instructed by a custom system prompt, analyzes the claim, scours the web for reliable information, and generates a verdict (e.g., ✅ Likely True, ❌ Likely False). 📲 WhatsApp Reply (Twilio node): The final, formatted response, complete with the verdict, a simple summary, and source citations, is sent back to the original user via the Twilio node.

Setup Guide 🛠️

Follow these steps carefully to get your fact-checking bot up and running.

Prerequisites

A Twilio Account with an active phone number or access to the WhatsApp Sandbox. A Perplexity AI Account to get an API key.

1. Configure Credentials

You'll need to add API keys for both Perplexity and Twilio to your n8n instance.

Perplexity AI: Go to your Perplexity AI API Settings. Generate and copy your API Key. In n8n, go to Credentials & New, search for "Perplexity," and add your key. Twilio: Go to your Twilio Console Dashboard. Find and copy your Account SID and Auth Token. In n8n, go to Credentials & New, search for "Twilio," and add your credentials.

2. Set Up the Webhook and Tunnel

To allow Twilio's cloud service to communicate with your n8n instance, you need a public URL. The n8n tunnel is perfect for this.

Start the n8n Tunnel: If you are running n8n locally, you'll need to expose it to the web. Open your terminal and run: n8n start --tunnel Copy Your Webhook URL: Once the tunnel is active, open your n8n workflow. In the Receive Whatsapp Messages (Webhook) node, you will see two URLs: Test and Production. Copy the Test/Production URL. This is the public URL that Twilio will use.

3. Configure Your Twilio WhatsApp Sandbox

Go to the Twilio Console and navigate to Messaging & Try it out & Send a WhatsApp message. Select the Sandbox Settings tab. In the section "WHEN A MESSAGE COMES IN," paste your n8n Production Webhook URL. Make sure the method is set to HTTP POST. Click Save.

How to Use Your Bot 🚀

Activate the Sandbox: To start, you (and any other users) must send a WhatsApp message with the join code (e.g., join given-word) to your Twilio Sandbox number. Twilio provides this phrase on the same Sandbox page. Fact-Check Away! Once joined, simply send any claim or question to the Twilio number. For example: Did Elon Musk discover a new planet? Within moments, the workflow will trigger, and you'll receive a formatted reply with the verdict and sources right in your chat!

Further Reading & Resources 🔗

n8n Tunnel Documentation Twilio for WhatsApp Quickstart Perplexity AI API Documentation