WhatsApp

Connect your Idun agent to WhatsApp so users can interact with it through messages using the Meta Business API.

Connect your Idun agent to WhatsApp so users can interact with it through messages.

Prerequisites

• A running Idun agent (engine)
• A Meta Business account
• A WhatsApp Business API app set up in the Meta Developer Portal
• Your engine must be publicly reachable (use ngrok for local development)

Setup

Admin UI

1. Open the integrations admin page

   Navigate to /admin/integrations/ in the running standalone. The channel catalog shows WhatsApp, Discord, Google Chat, Slack, and Microsoft Teams as active channels.

2. Create the WhatsApp integration

   Click WhatsApp and fill in the access token, phone number ID, and verify token.

   Field	Value
   access_token	Meta Graph API permanent access token
   phone_number_id	WhatsApp Business phone number ID
   verify_token	Webhook verification token (must match what you set in the Meta App Dashboard)

3. Save

   Save the form. The reload pipeline registers the WhatsApp webhook handler on the running engine.

Config file

1. Create a Meta app

   1. Go to the Meta Developer Portal
   2. Click Create App > select Business type
   3. Fill in the app name and select your Business account
   4. On the app dashboard, add the WhatsApp product
2. Get your credentials

   1. Go to WhatsApp > API Setup
   2. Copy the following values:
      • Phone Number ID: The ID of the phone number you send from
      • Permanent Access Token: Generate one under System Users in your Meta Business settings (or use the temporary token for testing)
   3. Choose a Verify Token: Any secret string you will use to verify the webhook
3. Configure the integration

   Add the WhatsApp integration to your engine config:

   config.yaml

   integrations:
     - provider: "WHATSAPP"
       enabled: true
       config:
         access_token: "EAAxxxxxxx..."
         phone_number_id: "123456789012345"
         verify_token: "my-webhook-verify-secret"
         api_version: "v21.0"
   

   Field	Description
   access_token	Meta Graph API permanent access token
   phone_number_id	WhatsApp Business phone number ID from step 2
   verify_token	Webhook verification token (must match what you configure in the Meta App Dashboard)
   api_version	(Optional) Meta Graph API version, defaults to v21.0

4. Set up the webhook

   1. Make sure your engine is running and publicly reachable
   2. In the Meta Developer Portal, go to WhatsApp > Configuration
   3. Under Webhook, click Edit and set:
      • Callback URL: https://<your-domain>/integrations/whatsapp/webhook
      • Verify Token: The same verify_token from your config
   4. Click Verify and Save (Meta sends a GET request to verify the endpoint)
   5. Subscribe to the messages webhook field
5. Test it

   1. Open WhatsApp on your phone
   2. Send a message to the WhatsApp Business number
   3. Your agent processes the message and replies directly in the chat

   With a test phone number, you can only send messages to numbers registered in the Meta Developer Portal under WhatsApp > API Setup > Test Numbers.

How it works

1. User sends a message to the WhatsApp Business number
2. Meta POSTs the webhook payload to your engine
3. Engine verifies the payload structure
4. Engine invokes the agent with the message text
5. Engine sends the agent’s reply back via the Meta Graph API

Session tracking: The sender’s phone number is used as the session ID, so conversation context is maintained per user.

Webhook verification: On setup, Meta sends a GET request with a challenge token. The engine verifies it against your verify_token and responds automatically.

Next steps

Slack

Connect your agent to Slack DMs and channels.

Discord

Reach the same agent through Discord slash commands.

Production hardening

Secure the engine before exposing webhooks to the public internet.