Automation library · Chat assistants

Create a privacy-focused AI assistant with Telegram and Ollama

Started by an incoming Telegram message, and works across Telegram. It puts a local model behind a retrieval step, so answers are drawn from documents you supply rather than from the model alone. 11 steps, 2 branches: a working afternoon to understand properly.

MediumCalls a model: a local modelRetrieval

11 stepsMedium: a working afternoon
2Branches: places the flow splits
0Loops or waits
1Service it connects to

The flow

Starts it 1Model 3Logic 2Service 5

The steps in the order they run, from what starts it.

  1. 1Telegram TriggerTelegram triggerStarts it
  2. 2Ollama Chat ModelLm Chat OllamaModel
  3. 3Simple MemoryMemory Buffer WindowModel
  4. 4Authorization Check IfIfLogic
  5. 5AI AgentAgentModel
  6. 6Message Type SwitchSwitchLogic
  7. 7Send a text messageTelegramService
  8. 8Send a text message1TelegramService
  9. 9Get Voice FileTelegramService
  10. 10Whisper ASR HTTP RequestHttp RequestService
  11. 11Rename Transcription KeyRename KeysService

How it's built

Starts on
An incoming Telegram message
Steps
11, with 2 branches
Size
Medium: a working afternoon
Connects to
Telegram
Model
a local model
Retrieval
Answers are drawn from documents you supply, not from the model alone

Questions

What does it need to run?

An n8n account, plus your own Telegram account, and a key for a local model. You connect your own accounts after importing it; none are included.

What starts it?

It starts on an incoming Telegram message.

Does it use AI?

Yes. It calls a local model. Its answers draw on documents you give it, not on the model alone. Model calls are billed by the provider, not by n8n.

How long does it take to set up?

Plan an afternoon. 11 steps is enough that you should read each one before running it.

How do I import it?

Copy the workflow, open a new workflow in n8n and paste. The steps appear on the canvas, ready for your own accounts.

Before you run it

Nothing here has been tested by us. It is somebody's working automation, read and described from its own steps. Treat the connections it wants as a list of accounts it will touch, and read the 11 steps before you point it at anything that matters.