WhatsApp's experiment with letting users create their own in-app agents is no longer confined to Android. WABetaInfo reports that the capability has now surfaced on iOS through beta version 26.37.10.70, available via TestFlight, bringing iPhone users into a feature that Android testers have already been able to access.
Setting One Up Means Connecting An API Key
The setup process starts inside WhatsApp's settings, where users can name their agent and choose a profile photo. WhatsApp then creates a dedicated chat for the agent and provides an API key that can be used to connect it to an external service.
Once connected, the agent can respond to messages sent in its dedicated chat. Despite the “agent” framing, WhatsApp says these services do not necessarily have to be powered by AI. A simple scripted bot can also work through the same system, while the API key can be reset if users want to disconnect and reconnect the service.
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Sandboxed By Design, But Not End-To-End Encrypted
WhatsApp appears to have built several restrictions into the feature. Each account can run up to five agents, with every agent confined to its own dedicated chat. The agents cannot access a user's other conversations, contacts or media stored on the device.
The more significant distinction concerns encryption. Third-party agent chats reportedly do not use WhatsApp's usual end-to-end encryption. Instead, messages are processed through a Meta-operated service, and the developer of the third-party agent may have access to messages sent to it.
That represents a significant privacy difference from standard WhatsApp conversations.
Still A Small, Country-Limited Test
For now, the feature is available only to a small number of iOS users in select countries, and WhatsApp has not said when, or whether, it will expand the rollout more widely.
The iOS test follows an earlier Android rollout, suggesting that WhatsApp is gradually expanding the feature across platforms rather than making it broadly available to all users.
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