Platform Features

Channels

Channels connect your agents and flows to the outside world. Converse supports phone calls, WhatsApp, SMS, and web widgets — all from the same platform.

Channel Types

Voice (Phone Calls)

Connect a phone number from Twilio, Plivo, or Exotel. When someone calls the number, the flow or agent you assigned answers automatically.

Setup steps:

Go to Channels → Add Channel → choose your provider.

Enter your API credentials. Converse verifies them and fetches your numbers.

Select a phone number from the list.

Assign an agent or flow to handle incoming calls.

Save — the webhook is configured at your provider automatically.

Auto-configure webhooks

Converse sets the answer and hangup routes at your provider. Do not construct these URLs yourself; when a provider requires manual setup, Channels shows the exact workspace-bound URL after the connection is saved.

Connect a WhatsApp Business number via the Meta Cloud API. Incoming messages trigger your assigned agent or flow. The agent responds as text — no voice involved.

Requires a Meta Business account and approved WhatsApp Business number.
You'll need your Permanent Access Token, Phone Number ID, App Secret, and a Verify Token you choose.
Paste your Converse webhook URL into the Meta dashboard manually after setup.

SMS

Use your Twilio number to send and receive SMS. Incoming texts are handled by your agent as a text conversation — same agent logic, no voice.

Web Widget (Voice + Chat)

Add a voice or chat widget to any website. Visitors can speak to or type to your agent directly from their browser — no phone number needed.

To get the embed URL:

Create a Web channel: Channels → Add Channel → Web Widget.

Assign an agent or flow.

Set Allowed Origins (the domains where you'll embed the widget).

Create a publishable key and restrict it to the website origins that may start sessions.

Use the Converse SDK voice or chat hook in your own UI.

Web voice — React hook

tsx

import { useConverseVoice } from '@converse/sdk/components';

const voice = useConverseVoice({
  publicKey: 'pk_live_YOUR_KEY',
  agentId: 'YOUR_AGENT_ID',
});

await voice.connect();

The SDK creates the short-lived session, publishes the microphone and handles reconnect and cleanup. Your application never receives a provider credential or constructs a media URL.

Channel status

Setup: Credentials entered but webhook not yet configured.
Active: Webhook is live and the channel can receive calls or messages.
Inactive: Channel is manually disabled.
Error: Webhook configuration failed — re-verify credentials.

Assigning agents vs flows

Each channel can have either an agent or a flow assigned — not both. Use an agent when the conversation is open-ended. Use a flow when you need structured routing before the agent takes over.