Abstract In wireless communication systems, accurate estimation of signal direction has always been a key research area. Channel State Information (CSI) is an important parameter that can be used to estimate the Direction of Arrival (DOA) of a signal. In order to improve the accuracy and robustness of DOA estimation, this study aims to explore a DOA estimation method based on CSI and improved neural networks. Firstly, the role of CSI in localization technology and related theories are detailed. Subsequently, the application of neural network-based fingerprint matching algorithms, including BP neural networks, Whale Optimization Algorithm (WOA), and chaotic mapping techniques, is analyzed. In light of this, an improved BP neural network integrating chaotic mapping and adaptive weighting is proposed to improve the positioning accuracy and convergence rate of the algorithm. Finally, through the collection and training of experimental data, an algorithm proposed in this article achieves a test set accuracy of 96.4286% and a training set accuracy of 82.7243%. The better training effect is obtained, which verifies the efficacy and superiority of the proposed approach.