Poke vs Perisclaw: which AI assistant fits how you text? (2026)

You've seen Poke on your feed: an AI you text like a friend, that books things, nags you about your calendar and has opinions. You sign up, it's charming, and then a client sends you a quote request on WhatsApp, your supplier confirms a delivery in a group, and Poke knows nothing about either, because those chats are somewhere it can't see.

Poke vs Perisclaw comes down to where your life happens. Poke is a contact you text on Apple Messages, Telegram, RCS or, in some countries, WhatsApp; it knows what you tell it and the apps you connect, and it's the more fun, more polished choice for personal life on an iPhone, especially in the US. Perisclaw is an executive assistant that runs on your own WhatsApp number: it reads the chats you allow, tracks what you and other people promised, follows up and summarises busy groups, and it works the same in any country. If your work happens in WhatsApp, pick Perisclaw; if your life happens in iMessage and email, pick Poke.

Everything below was checked on Poke's own site and docs as of November 2026.

Poke vs Perisclaw at a glance

What Poke does well

Poke calls itself "your new favorite contact", and it earns it. It texts like a person, remembers what you've told it, and checks in on its own: a heads-up before a meeting, a nudge about an email you haven't answered. Its site describes "a personality who keeps things as real as a friend", and that's the main reason people talk about it.

• It feels native on an iPhone: in June 2026 Poke became the first AI product verified on Apple Messages, so it shows up as a proper contact in your texts.

• It connects to a lot: Gmail, Google Calendar, Outlook, Notion, Linear, GitHub, Asana, Todoist, Granola, Strava, Oura, Sonos, Hue and more. Developers can add their own MCP servers or use the Poke API, and anyone can build "recipes" for routines.

• It can hand jobs to people: since June 2026 Poke can bring in real people for things like restaurant reservations, phone calls, placing orders and booking rides. Poke says those helpers see only what the task needs, not your chat history or connected apps, and expenses are charged at cost.

• It's free to start: the Free plan needs no card and covers light everyday use. Pro is $19 a month for heavier use and stronger models, and Ultra is $199 a month with a credit pool and pay-as-you-go on top.

One change to know about: on July 23, 2026, The Interaction Company, which makes Poke, joined Cognition, the company behind the coding agent Devin.

Poke is the better choice if you're on an iPhone, your days run through email, calendar and personal apps, and you want an assistant that's pleasant to talk to and can sort out errands.

Where Poke stops: WhatsApp and your own chats

Poke is a separate contact. Whatever channel you use, it sees the messages you send it and the apps you connect, not your other conversations. That's fine when your work lives in Gmail. It's a problem when your clients, suppliers and team talk to you on WhatsApp, because the quote request, the confirmed delivery date and the "I'll send it tomorrow" are all in chats Poke never sees, unless you forward each one.

Then there's WhatsApp itself. Assistants that live on WhatsApp as a business contact depend on Meta's business platform, and since January 15, 2026 Meta only allows general-purpose AI assistants there where regulators made it. As of November 2026, Meta's list covers Brazil, Italy, the EU and EEA countries, and Türkiye. When the rule started, Poke's release notes said WhatsApp stayed available only in Italy and Brazil and added Telegram for everyone else. So if you're in India, the US, Mexico, Indonesia or the Gulf, you'll be texting Poke on iMessage, Telegram or RCS, not WhatsApp.

What Perisclaw does differently

Perisclaw doesn't ask you to message a new contact. It connects to your own WhatsApp number as a linked device, the same way WhatsApp Web does, and works with regular WhatsApp or the WhatsApp Business app. You talk to it in your self-chat (the "message yourself" chat), or type /claw in any chat or group to get help right there. Because it doesn't use Meta's business platform, Meta's rule for AI chatbots doesn't decide which countries it works in.

What that gets you:

• A morning catch-up: the chats waiting on your reply, decisions that need you, and promises that are due, each with a one-line reason, plus your meetings if your calendar is connected.

• Promises tracked: write "I'll send the revised quote Friday" to a client and it becomes a task. Send the quote and the task closes on its own; forget, and it's back in your catch-up.

• Follow-ups from your number: "Ask Rahul for the signed agreement Friday, and chase him every two days until he replies." You see who it will message, how long it waits and when it stops before anything starts.

• Voice notes both ways: send it a voice note with three instructions and it handles all three. Ask "what did the supplier say in that two-minute audio?" and you get the gist.

• Your other tools: Gmail or Outlook, Google Calendar, Drive and Sheets from the same chat. "Find the email where the landlord confirmed the deposit."

By default, anything Perisclaw writes to someone else on your request lands in your self-chat first and goes out only when you approve it. Follow-ups you set up in advance send as planned.

Using it with a team

Poke is a personal assistant for one person. Perisclaw is built for people whose work involves other people's chats. Type "/claw what did the client approve here and what's still open?" in a shared client group and the answer appears in that thread.

Perisclaw also has a team plan, still rolling out to accounts as of November 2026, that puts everyone on one bill while each person keeps their own number and their own assistant. Nobody on the team, the owner included, can read anyone else's chats. Details are in Team plans.

What Perisclaw can't do

Be clear on the trade-offs before you choose:

• WhatsApp only: no iMessage, Telegram or SMS. If your life is in Apple Messages, Poke is the better fit.

• No phone calls or human helpers: Perisclaw won't call a restaurant or send a person to place an order.

• No bulk sending: it stops after 15 chats and asks before going further, because bulk messages can get a real number flagged.

• The linked-device caveat: a linked device isn't something WhatsApp built for outside tools, and WhatsApp's help centre warns that linking unofficial apps can lead to a ban. Perisclaw is built for normal personal use and stays well clear of the bulk patterns WhatsApp's spam rules target.

How each one handles your data

Poke says its human helpers can't see your chat history, memories or integrations, only what a task needs. Perisclaw reads only the chats you allow; block a chat and it can't read, search or quote it. Your data is never used to train AI models, and Perisclaw is ISO 27001 certified. You can disconnect it any time from Linked devices in WhatsApp. More in Privacy & security.

Which one should you pick?

• Pick Poke if: you're on an iPhone, mostly in the US, and want a friendly assistant for email, calendar, personal apps and errands, with a free plan to start.

• Pick Perisclaw if: your clients, suppliers or team are on WhatsApp, anywhere in the world, and the problem is replies, promises and follow-ups getting lost there.

• Use both: plenty of people keep a personal assistant on iMessage and let Perisclaw handle WhatsApp.

You can try Perisclaw with a 7-day free trial, no card needed, and see what your first morning catch-up finds. For Lindy, Martin and Tab as well, see the best AI assistant you can text.

FAQ

Is Poke available on WhatsApp?

Only in some countries. Poke lists WhatsApp as a channel, but a WhatsApp contact like Poke depends on Meta allowing general-purpose AI assistants on its business platform, which as of November 2026 it does only in Brazil, the EU and EEA, and Türkiye. Elsewhere you use Poke on Apple Messages, Telegram or RCS.

Can Poke read my WhatsApp chats?

No. Poke sees the messages you send it and the apps you connect. Perisclaw runs on your own WhatsApp number, so it can work with the chats you allow and skip any you block.

Who owns Poke now?

The Interaction Company of California, which makes Poke, joined Cognition, the maker of Devin, on July 23, 2026.

How much does Poke cost compared with Perisclaw?

Poke has a free plan, Pro at $19 a month and Ultra at $199 a month. Perisclaw has a 7-day free trial with no card, then a flat monthly price.

What's a good Poke alternative for WhatsApp in India or Mexico?

Perisclaw. It works on your own WhatsApp or WhatsApp Business app number in any country, in the language you write in, because it doesn't rely on Meta's chatbot rules.

If your work runs on WhatsApp, get an assistant that works inside it. Start your 7-day free trial →