Telegram is the right channel when Slack isn't an option — you're outside the workspace's Slack tenant, you're collaborating with a group that lives on Telegram, or you want a lightweight mobile DM channel with Okou that's separate from your team's Slack.
Connect your personal Telegram account to the official Okou bot. Use the bot shown in your workspace's Telegram settings; there is no bot token to create or paste.
Connecting
- In Okou, open Where Okou works → Telegram.
- Choose Connect beside the official bot.
- Complete Telegram's authorization flow with the personal Telegram account you want to use. Sign in to Okou if prompted.
- Check that the settings page shows your connected Telegram account.
- Open the official bot in Telegram and send a message. Follow any account-connection prompt before starting work.
How you use Okou on Telegram
Two primary patterns:
DM the bot. Behaves like a private chat with Okou. Messages, files, photos — Okou sees them all. Each DM thread maps to a chat in Okou.
Add the official bot to a group. Mention the bot or reply to its messages to start or continue a request. Each person requesting work needs their own connected account and permissions. Group members can see the results the bot posts in that group.
Common Telegram workflows
- Mobile inbox triage. On the train, message the official bot: "Summarize my unread Slack messages from #cs."
- Vendor or partner groups. Ask the bot to help with summaries, reminders, or translation in a group where it has been added.
- Review on the move. Ask for a launch brief, a customer reply draft, or a summary of a document, then continue in the linked web chat when needed.
Account access
Your Telegram connection links your personal Telegram account to your Okou account. It uses your available workspace access, connected services, and permissions. Creating another Telegram bot is not how you choose an agent or gain access to another person's tools.
File support
Telegram supports photos, voice notes, documents, and PDFs. Okou ingests all of them as chat inputs. Outbound files (artifacts Okou produces) are returned as Telegram documents or images inline.
Common pitfalls
- The bot asks you to connect. Open the connection link and sign in to the correct Okou account, or reconnect from Where Okou works → Telegram.
- The wrong Telegram account is shown. Disconnect it in Telegram settings and reconnect using the intended account.
- The bot doesn't respond in a group. Make sure the official bot is in the group, mention it or reply to its message, and check that your account is connected.
- Connection cannot finish. Allow the Telegram authorization tab to open and try again. If the official bot is unavailable in Settings, contact support.
What's next
- See Workflows for capturing recurring mobile work.
- See Permissions for what Okou can and can't do via your bot.
