Technology and Science04 June, 20262 min read
Poke Becomes First AI Agent Approved for Apple Messages for Business Platform
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Poke becomes first AI agent approved to run on Apple's Messages for Business platform. Users can chat with Poke in iMessage and have it act on requests.
Poke enters iMessage
Poke, a startup that turns using AI agents into something as simple as sending a text message, became the first AI agent approved to run on Apple’s Messages for Business platform. TechCrunch reports that Poke launched in March and can help with daily planning, managing a calendar, tracking health and fitness, controlling a smart home, and editing photos via text message. The company says it has relayed some 100 million messages, and TechCrunch adds that Poke operates over SMS, Telegram, and, in some markets, WhatsApp.
TechCrunch also says Poke will be able to add iMessage to its supported platforms, letting consumers interact with the agent through iMessage’s interface rather than a separate consumer-facing app. The integration is positioned as arriving just days ahead of Apple’s anticipated Worldwide Developers Conference, where Apple is expected to introduce an AI-optimized version of Siri and other AI tools and services for app developers.
Approval process and model
TechCrunch quotes Marvin von Hagen, co-founder of The Interaction Company of California, saying Apple charges the startup “per user on the platform and actually make money with this.” TechCrunch adds that getting Apple’s approval required Poke to verify that it could offer live support, if needed, and that its AI agent was clearly identified as such. TechCrunch says Poke submitted testimonies from its messaging providers and customized its user interface to meet Apple’s guidelines, including that Poke on iMessage has to show link previews instead of inline links.
9to5Mac reports that Poke is now available in Apple’s Messages app via the Business Chat pathway, letting users chat with it from iMessage and have it take action on requests. 9to5Mac also notes that some users reported reply delays shortly after launch, with the service “experiencing issues” as messages were not immediately answered.
What comes next
TechCrunch frames the Messages for Business platform as a way for consumers to reach out to businesses for information, support, and appointment scheduling without having to call by phone, and it says Poke’s users ask the AI agent a question or make a request that it responds to via text. The Tech Buzz says Poke just cleared a significant hurdle as the first AI agent officially approved for Apple’s Messages for Business platform, and it describes the approval as a “watershed moment” for conversational AI in enterprise communications. Zamin.uz says Poke launched in March and that its rollout comes ahead of the anticipated Worldwide Developers Conference, where Apple is expected to unveil a new AI-enhanced version of Siri and other AI tools.
TechCrunch reports that Poke is currently rolling out invites to existing users that will allow them to optionally move over to the iMessage experience, if they prefer. TechCrunch concludes that it’s not clear if Apple will announce any news related to AI agents on its Message for Business platform at WWDC next week, but it says von Hagen isn’t clued into Apple’s plans.