Poke, the text-message-based AI agent startup from Palo Alto’s The Interaction Company of California, has become the first AI agent approved to run on Apple’s Messages for Business platform, co-founder Marvin von Hagen told TechCrunch. Previously limited to established businesses such as airlines, retailers, and hotel chains, the platform handles consumer-to-business messaging through iMessage’s interface and had never been opened to AI agents. Poke, which launched in March and has relayed over 100 million messages across SMS, Telegram, and WhatsApp in some markets, will now add iMessage as a supported channel. The startup pays Apple a per-user fee for access — pricing von Hagen described as significantly lower than what Meta charges third-party AI agents for WhatsApp, which Meta raised after EU regulations required it to open that platform to outside agents.
Gaining approval required several months of work. Poke customized its interface to match Apple’s guidelines — replacing inline links with link previews and adopting Apple’s style guide for buttons and UI elements — while also submitting documentation from its messaging providers and demonstrating it could offer live human support if needed. Apple also requires agents to be clearly identified as AI. Von Hagen sees the arrangement as a signal of Apple’s direction: the per-user model means the company benefits financially if AI agent adoption grows through iMessage. The approval lands ahead of WWDC on June 8, where a revamped AI-powered Siri is widely expected, and comes amid broader speculation that Apple may eventually open the App Store to AI agents. This iMessage path is distinct from that: it uses the existing business messaging channel rather than creating a new standalone app category.