# What 21,000 WhatsApp messages reveal about AI utility in extreme poverty contexts > Source: > Published: 2026-06-16 11:27:58+00:00 Disclosure: I work at GiveDirectly. This is a linkpost summarizing findings from a pilot we ran in Rwanda. I used AI to assist in writing this post, and it’s likely that >30% is AI-generated text. View our blog and watch a video of recipients using AI here: [https://www.givedirectly.org/the-robots-work-at-night](https://www.givedirectly.org/the-robots-work-at-night) Last year, GiveDirectly tested whether unrestricted access to an AI chatbot could complement cash transfers for recipients living in extreme poverty. Alongside our usual ~$1,000 one-time transfers in rural Rwanda, we offered 832 recipients access to a ChatGPT-powered chatbot via WhatsApp - a platform most already used - with no restrictions on what they could ask. **What we expected** We anticipated questions about the GiveDirectly program, help planning how to spend transfers, and basic business advice. People did use it for all of those things. **What actually happened** The more revealing pattern was how quickly recipients moved beyond program-specific questions. Across 21,000 inbound messages between November 2025 and April 2026, people used the chatbot the way people use AI everywhere: for family conflicts, sick children, market prices, and questions they couldn't easily take to anyone else. A few examples, translated verbatim from Kinyarwanda: This isn't surprising in isolation - it mirrors how AI is used globally. But in rural Rwanda, where a community health worker, business coach, or legal aid office may be hours away or nonexistent, the stakes of that access feel different. **The timing finding** Usage increased late at night - after farm work, after children were asleep, in the quiet hours when formal services are long closed. One recipient captured it simply in a focus group: *"The robots work at night."* This matters because most traditional support programs - training sessions, coaching, extension services - are delivered during the day, in groups, on fixed schedules. The chatbot met people where they actually were. **Where it fell short** This is where we think the EA community's scrutiny is most valuable. Three gaps stood out: **Open questions** We're continuing to test - a similar pilot is now underway in Malawi - but we're genuinely uncertain about several things and would value the community's thinking: We don't think the answers will come from one organization or one pilot. If you're building, funding, or researching AI in low-resource settings, we'd welcome the conversation.