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Put your agent behind your WhatsApp number

Put an agent behind your WhatsApp number​

You can connect a WhatsApp business number to an agent. The agent answers every customer who messages that number. Each customer's phone number is one conversation, so the agent keeps context across their messages.

The channel handles the details of WhatsApp for you:

  • Read receipts and typing: The customer sees their message marked as read and a typing indicator while the agent works.
  • Approvals: When the agent needs approval to run a tool, the customer gets Approve and Deny reply buttons.
  • Media: The agent receives images and documents the customer sends, with their captions.
  • The 24-hour window: Meta only allows free-form replies within 24 hours of the customer's last message. A reply that is ready after that is held, and Agenta sends it when the customer writes again. You can set an approved re-open template to prompt them.
  • Opting out: A customer who sends STOP is not answered until they send START.

You bring your own number through Meta's WhatsApp Cloud API. Setup takes a phone number ID, an access token, and an app secret. The guide walks you through it: Connect a WhatsApp number to an agent.

Getting started​

Agents can also answer in Slack and Telegram. See Talk to your agent in Slack and Talk to your agent in Telegram.