WhatsApp Ultimate
Everything you can do in WhatsApp, your AI agent can do too.
This skill documents all WhatsApp capabilities available through OpenClaw's native channel integration. No external Docker services, no CLI wrappers — just direct WhatsApp Web protocol via Baileys.
Prerequisites
- OpenClaw with WhatsApp channel configured
- WhatsApp account linked via QR code (
openclaw whatsapp login)
Capabilities Overview
| Category | Features |
|---|---|
| Messaging | Text, media, polls, stickers, voice notes, GIFs |
| Interactions | Reactions, replies/quotes, edit, unsend |
| Groups | Create, rename, icon, description, participants, admin, invite links |
Total: 22 distinct actions
Messaging
Send Text
message action=send channel=whatsapp to="+34612345678" message="Hello!"
Send Media (Image/Video/Document)
message action=send channel=whatsapp to="+34612345678" message="Check this out" filePath=/path/to/image.jpg
Supported: JPG, PNG, GIF, MP4, PDF, DOC, etc.
Send Poll
message action=poll channel=whatsapp to="+34612345678" pollQuestion="What time?" pollOption=["3pm", "4pm", "5pm"]
Send Sticker
message action=sticker channel=whatsapp to="+34612345678" filePath=/path/to/sticker.webp
Must be WebP format, ideally 512x512.
Send Voice Note
message action=send channel=whatsapp to="+34612345678" filePath=/path/to/audio.ogg asVoice=true
Critical: Use OGG/Opus format for WhatsApp voice notes. MP3 may not play correctly.
Send GIF
message action=send channel=whatsapp to="+34612345678" filePath=/path/to/animation.mp4 gifPlayback=true
Convert GIF to MP4 first (WhatsApp requires this):
ffmpeg -i input.gif -movflags faststart -pix_fmt yuv420p -vf "scale=trunc(iw/2)*2:trunc(ih/2)*2" output.mp4 -y
Interactions
Add Reaction
message action=react channel=whatsapp chatJid="34612345678@s.whatsapp.net" messageId="ABC123" emoji="🚀"
Remove Reaction
message action=react channel=whatsapp chatJid="34612345678@s.whatsapp.net" messageId="ABC123" remove=true
Reply/Quote Message
message action=reply channel=whatsapp to="34612345678@s.whatsapp.net" replyTo="QUOTED_MSG_ID" message="Replying to this!"
Edit Message (Own Messages Only)
message action=edit channel=whatsapp chatJid="34612345678@s.whatsapp.net" messageId="ABC123" message="Updated text"
Unsend/Delete Message
message action=unsend channel=whatsapp chatJid="34612345678@s.whatsapp.net" messageId="ABC123"
Group Management
Create Group
message action=group-create channel=whatsapp name="Project Team" participants=["+34612345678", "+34687654321"]
Rename Group
message action=renameGroup channel=whatsapp groupId="123456789@g.us" name="New Name"
Set Group Icon
message action=setGroupIcon channel=whatsapp groupId="123456789@g.us" filePath=/path/to/icon.jpg
Set Group Description
message action=setGroupDescription channel=whatsapp groupJid="123456789@g.us" description="Team chat for Q1 project"
Add Participant
message action=addParticipant channel=whatsapp groupId="123456789@g.us" participant="+34612345678"
Remove Participant
message action=removeParticipant channel=whatsapp groupId="123456789@g.us" participant="+34612345678"
Promote to Admin
message action=promoteParticipant channel=whatsapp groupJid="123456789@g.us" participants=["+34612345678"]
Demote from Admin
message action=demoteParticipant channel=whatsapp groupJid="123456789@g.us" participants=["+34612345678"]
Leave Group
message action=leaveGroup channel=whatsapp groupId="123456789@g.us"
Get Invite Link
message action=getInviteCode channel=whatsapp groupJid="123456789@g.us"
Returns: https://chat.whatsapp.com/XXXXX
Revoke Invite Link
message action=revokeInviteCode channel=whatsapp groupJid="123456789@g.us"
Get Group Info
message action=getGroupInfo channel=whatsapp groupJid="123456789@g.us"
Returns: name, description, participants, admins, creation date.
JID Formats
WhatsApp uses JIDs (Jabber IDs) internally:
| Type | Format | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Individual | <number>@s.whatsapp.net |
34612345678@s.whatsapp.net |
| Group | <id>@g.us |
123456789012345678@g.us |
When using to= with phone numbers, OpenClaw auto-converts to JID format.
Tips
Voice Notes
Always use OGG/Opus format:
ffmpeg -i input.wav -c:a libopus -b:a 64k output.ogg
Stickers
Convert images to WebP stickers:
ffmpeg -i input.png -vf "scale=512:512:force_original_aspect_ratio=decrease,pad=512:512:(ow-iw)/2:(oh-ih)/2:color=0x00000000" output.webp
Acknowledgment Messages (ackMessage)
Send an instant text message when an inbound message is received — fires at gateway level before model inference:
{
"channels": {
"whatsapp": {
"ackMessage": {
"text": "⚡",
"direct": true,
"group": "never"
}
}
}
}
| Field | Type | Default | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
text |
string | "" |
Message to send (empty = disabled) |
direct |
boolean | true |
Send in direct chats |
group |
"always" / "mentions" / "never" |
"never" |
Group behavior |
This is different from ackReaction (which sends an emoji reaction). ackMessage sends a standalone message bubble — visible in WhatsApp Web even when reaction flips aren't.
Rate Limits
WhatsApp has anti-spam measures. Avoid:
- Bulk messaging to many contacts
- Rapid-fire messages
- Messages to contacts who haven't messaged you first
Message IDs
To react/edit/unsend, you need the message ID. Incoming messages include this in the event payload. For your own sent messages, the send response includes the ID.
Comparison with Other Skills
| Feature | whatsapp-ultimate | wacli | whatsapp-automation | gif-whatsapp |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Native integration | ✅ | ❌ (CLI) | ❌ (Docker) | N/A |
| Send text | ✅ | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ |
| Send media | ✅ | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ |
| Polls | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ |
| Stickers | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ |
| Voice notes | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ |
| GIFs | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ | ✅ |
| Reactions | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ |
| Reply/Quote | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ |
| Edit | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ |
| Unsend | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ |
| Group create | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ |
| Group management | ✅ (full) | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ |
| Receive messages | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ❌ |
| Two-way chat | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ |
| External deps | None | Go binary | Docker + WAHA | ffmpeg |
Media Download (from History)
Download images, videos, documents, and audio from past WhatsApp messages stored in the history database. Uses Baileys' downloadContentFromMessage with the media keys stored in raw_json — no active socket needed.
List Recent Media
cd ~/src/tinkerclaw && npx tsx src/whatsapp-history/download-media.ts --list-media [--since YYYY-MM-DD] [--chat <jid|name>] [--limit N]
Download by Message ID
cd ~/src/tinkerclaw && npx tsx src/whatsapp-history/download-media.ts --id <messageId> [--out <directory>]
Default output: ~/.openclaw/workspace/data/wa-media/<messageId>.<ext>
Notes
- Media URLs on WhatsApp servers expire after ~2 weeks. Download promptly.
- Works for: images, videos, documents, audio, stickers, voice notes.
- Extension auto-detected from the message's mimetype.
- The
raw_jsoncolumn in the messages table must contain the original Baileys proto (live-captured messages only, not imported .txt exports).
3.5.1
- Added: Media download from history —
download-media.tsscript extracts media keys from storedraw_jsonand downloads/decrypts directly from WhatsApp CDN without needing an active socket connection.
3.5.0
- Added:
ackMessage— gateway-level instant message acknowledgment. Sends a configurable text message (e.g. ⚡) the moment an inbound message arrives, before any model inference. Fires at the same speed asackReaction(emoji flip). Useful as a visual cue to distinguish your messages from bot replies in WhatsApp Web where reaction flips aren't visible.
3.4.0
- Fixed: Chat search now resolves LID/JID aliases — searching by chat name finds messages across both
@lidand@s.whatsapp.netJID formats - Added:
resolveChatJids()cross-references chats, contacts, and messages tables to discover all JID aliases for a given chat filter - Improved: Search falls back to original LIKE behaviour if no JIDs resolve, so no regressions
3.0.0
Your Agent
↓
OpenClaw message tool
↓
WhatsApp Channel Plugin
↓
Baileys (WhatsApp Web Protocol)
↓
WhatsApp Servers
No external services. No Docker. No CLI tools. Direct protocol integration.
License
MIT — Part of OpenClaw
Pairs Well With
- outlook-hack — same philosophy for Outlook: reads everything, drafts replies, won't send
- teams-hack — Teams integration with the same browser-relay approach
- agent-superpowers — engineering discipline for the agent running behind these channels
👉 https://github.com/globalcaos/tinkerclaw
Clone it. Fork it. Break it. Make it yours.