# Wechaty — Conversational RPA SDK for Chatbot Makers

> Open-source SDK for building chatbots across WeChat, WhatsApp, and other messaging platforms using a unified JavaScript/TypeScript API.

## Install

Save as a script file and run:

# Wechaty — Conversational RPA SDK for Chatbot Makers

## Quick Use
```bash
npm init wechaty-puppet-padlocal my-bot
cd my-bot
npm start
```

## Introduction
Wechaty is an open-source conversational RPA SDK that lets developers build chatbots for WeChat, WhatsApp, Gitter, Lark, and other messaging platforms through a single, unified API. It abstracts away the protocol-level details of each platform so you can focus on conversation logic rather than transport plumbing.

## What Wechaty Does
- Provides a universal chatbot API across 10+ messaging platforms
- Handles contact management, room (group) operations, and friendship events
- Supports sending and receiving text, images, files, links, and mini-programs
- Offers a puppet architecture that swaps platform connectors without changing bot code
- Ships SDKs in TypeScript, Python, Go, Java, .NET, PHP, and Scala

## Architecture Overview
Wechaty follows a puppet-provider pattern. The core SDK defines a high-level Wechaty class that emits events (message, login, friendship, room-join). Under the hood, a Puppet abstraction delegates to a concrete PuppetProvider (e.g., PadLocal for iPad protocol, WhatsApp Web, or Gitter). Providers can run in-process or as a gRPC remote service, which means a Python bot can drive a TypeScript puppet over the network.

## Self-Hosting & Configuration
- Install via npm: `npm install wechaty`
- Choose a puppet provider: `WECHATY_PUPPET=wechaty-puppet-padlocal`
- Set the puppet token as an env var: `WECHATY_TOKEN=your_token`
- For WhatsApp, use the free whatsapp-web puppet with no token required
- Deploy as a Docker container for headless server-side bots

## Key Features
- Multi-platform: one codebase, many chat networks
- Event-driven API with async/await support throughout
- Polyglot SDKs sharing the same puppet service via gRPC
- Plugin system for middleware such as QR-code generation, message filtering, and auto-reply
- Active community with 200+ contributors and 100+ published plugins

## Comparison with Similar Tools
- **Botpress** — visual flow builder with broader NLU; Wechaty is code-first with wider IM coverage
- **Rasa** — focuses on NLU/dialogue management; Wechaty focuses on platform connectivity
- **node-telegram-bot-api** — Telegram-only; Wechaty covers multiple platforms in one SDK
- **whatsapp-web.js** — WhatsApp-only reverse-engineered client; Wechaty wraps it as one puppet among many
- **Hubot** — GitHub's classic bot framework; Wechaty provides richer IM-specific primitives

## FAQ
**Q: Is Wechaty free to use?**
A: The SDK itself is open-source under Apache-2.0. Some puppet providers (like PadLocal for WeChat) require a paid token, while others (WhatsApp Web) are free.

**Q: Can I run a single bot on multiple platforms simultaneously?**
A: Yes. Instantiate multiple Wechaty instances with different puppet providers, and share your message handler logic across them.

**Q: Which programming languages does Wechaty support?**
A: TypeScript/JavaScript is the primary SDK. Official polyglot SDKs exist for Python, Go, Java, .NET, PHP, Scala, and Rust, all communicating with puppets via gRPC.

**Q: Does Wechaty work in China behind the GFW?**
A: Yes. WeChat puppets run domestically, and WhatsApp puppets can connect through standard proxies if needed.

## Sources
- https://github.com/wechaty/wechaty
- https://wechaty.js.org/docs/

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Source: https://tokrepo.com/en/workflows/asset-07f0e43e
Author: Script Depot