Docs / Notifications / Telegram Channel Setup

Telegram Channel Setup

Published · Last updated: May 2026 · 3 min read

Who this is for

Anyone who wants to receive CloudAIPilot notifications via Telegram — ideal for personal mobile alerts.

What you will complete

Create a Telegram bot, get the required bot token and chat ID, and connect it as a notification channel.

Before you begin

  • Admin or Owner role in CloudAIPilot.
  • A Telegram account.
  • The Telegram app on your phone or computer.

Overview

Telegram notifications work via a bot. You create a bot using BotFather (Telegram's official bot creation tool), copy the bot's API token, find your chat ID, and add both to CloudAIPilot.

Step 1: Create a Telegram bot with BotFather

  1. Open Telegram and search for @BotFather (with the blue verified checkmark).
  2. Start a chat with BotFather and send: /newbot
  3. BotFather asks for a name — enter a display name for your bot (e.g., "CloudAIPilot Alerts").
  4. BotFather asks for a username — enter a unique username ending in bot (e.g., cloudaipilot_yourname_bot).
  5. BotFather sends you a confirmation message containing your Bot API Token — it looks like 123456789:ABCdef...
  6. Copy the bot token. You will need it in CloudAIPilot.

Step 2: Get your chat ID

You need to tell CloudAIPilot which Telegram chat (or group) to send messages to. The chat ID is a number that identifies your conversation with the bot.

For personal notifications (bot sends directly to you):

  1. In Telegram, find your new bot and send it any message (e.g., "hello").
  2. Open a browser and go to: https://api.telegram.org/bot/getUpdates

(Replace with your actual token.)

  1. The page shows a JSON response. Find the "chat" object and copy the "id" value. This is a number (e.g., 123456789).
  2. This is your personal Chat ID.

For group notifications (bot posts to a Telegram group):

  1. Create a Telegram group and add your bot to it.
  2. Send a message in the group.
  3. Visit the same getUpdates URL above.
  4. The group chat ID appears in the JSON response — group IDs are negative numbers (e.g., -1001234567890).

Step 3: Add the Telegram channel in CloudAIPilot

  1. Go to Settings → Notification Channels → Add Channel.
  2. Select Telegram.
  3. Enter a Channel Name (e.g., "My Telegram Alerts" or "Team Telegram Group").
  4. In Bot Token, paste your bot token from BotFather.
  5. In Chat ID, paste the chat ID you found in Step 2.
  6. Click Add Channel.
  7. Click Test to send a test message via Telegram.
  8. Check your Telegram app — a test message from your bot should appear.

What success looks like

  • A test message arrives in your Telegram chat or group from your bot.
  • The channel status shows Verified.
  • When CloudAIPilot sends alerts or events, the Telegram message arrives on your phone within seconds.

Common errors and fixes

"Test shows error — 'bot token invalid'" Cause: The token was entered incorrectly or the bot was deleted and recreated. Fix: Copy the token directly from BotFather's message. Check for leading or trailing spaces.

"Test shows error — 'chat not found'" Cause: The chat ID is incorrect, or the bot has not been started in the target chat. Fix: Verify the chat ID from the getUpdates URL. Make sure you sent the bot a message before checking getUpdates.

"The bot sent a test message but I get 'Forbidden' for subsequent messages" Cause: You may have blocked the bot in Telegram. Fix: Open Telegram, find the bot, and click Start or Unblock.

"I cannot find my chat ID in the getUpdates response" Cause: The bot has not received any messages yet. Fix: Go to Telegram, open the chat with your bot, and send any message. Then check getUpdates again.

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