Telegram introduced its Bot API in 2015. The launch opened Telegram to third-party developers who could create automated accounts capable of responding to messages, processing commands, and interacting with users in chats and groups.
Telegram announced its bot platform in June 2015. Bots are not ordinary human accounts: they are software-controlled accounts registered through Telegram's BotFather service. Developers use the Bot API to connect those accounts to outside programs, websites, databases, and services.
The 2015 launch helped Telegram evolve from a messaging app into a broader platform. Bots have since been used for games, alerts, customer support, payments, moderation, search, and inline content sharing. A common mix-up is confusing the Bot API with Telegram's general developer APIs. Telegram has public APIs for building clients and accessing the wider service, while the Bot API is specifically designed for program-controlled bot accounts.