August 2026 was a pretty big month. WhatsApp Groups are live, inbound calls now land with the right person automatically, your AI assistant can take actions on Wati (not just read it), and we fixed a handful of things that were quietly annoying. Here's everything that we cooked in Aug:

🔔 Important Updates

Growth plan: multiple channels and full Instagram + Messenger automations

Why this matters
Growth plan customers were previously limited to a single channel, which meant having to choose one platform to manage in Wati rather than running WhatsApp, Instagram, and Messenger together.

The update
The single-channel restriction on Growth has been removed. New Growth signups and customers who joined on or after April 23 can now add multiple channels. Customers who joined before April 23 and already had multi-channel access now also unlock advanced automations for Instagram and Messenger: DM and comment-to-DM rules (posts, reels, story replies and mentions), and chatbot flows.

Note: The multi-channel change does not apply to GCR and LATAM regions, where the existing setup remains unchanged.

Plan: Growth

🚀 New Features

Create and manage WhatsApp Groups right from Wati

Why this matters
Managing group conversations meant juggling WhatsApp manually outside Wati. No visibility, no automation, no team coordination.

The update
Your WhatsApp Business number can now create groups, invite contacts, and manage conversations right from Team Inbox. Each group holds up to 7 contacts. There's also a Groups API to automate creation from your own system.

Plan: Business (OBA verification required · Pure API number only, not CoEx · Not available on free trial)

Learn more → · Watch demo →

Every inbound call now goes to the right person

Why this matters
Inbound WhatsApp Calls had no clear routing logic. Calls landed randomly, went missed, or sat unattended, frustrating customers and wasting response time.

The update
Every inbound WhatsApp Call now follows a clear routing chain: current assignee first, then contact owner, then your automation rules. Set up post-call automations too: send a follow-up on a missed call, or hand the conversation to your Astra AI agent until someone calls back.

Plan: Growth, Pro, Business

Watch demo →

Button messages on Instagram

Why this matters
Instagram DM automations were text-only. Turning a comment into a lead required too many manual steps with no structured flow.

The update
Build Instagram message templates with up to 3 tappable buttons or website links. Add them to a chatbot flow, wire that flow into your comment-to-DM automations, and customers go from comment to qualified lead without typing a single word.

Plan: Growth, Pro, Business

Watch video →

Your AI assistant can now act on Wati, not just read it

Why this matters
The Wati MCP Server was read-only. Your AI assistant could pull data but couldn't take action, so you still had to do the heavy lifting yourself.

The update
The Wati MCP Server now spans all your workspaces and supports write actions: update contact attributes in bulk, build audience segments by describing who you want, and send images, documents, or video into live chats without leaving your AI assistant. Switching between accounts is now one sentence in the conversation, not a full reconnection.

Plan: Growth, Pro, Business

Watch demo → · Learn more →

WhatsApp Flows: send via templates, log every response, build better forms

Why this matters
You couldn't send a flow without a chatbot or an inbound message first. Submissions had no audit trail — no way to verify a response went through or check if someone filled the form twice. And building clean forms for long lists or multi-step journeys required workarounds.

The update
Four upgrades at once: attach a flow to a template as a CTA button and send it via Campaigns or the API — no chatbot required. A new Responses section logs every submission as its own row, filterable by date and exportable to CSV, with nothing overwritten on repeat fills. The listing page now shows Triggered vs. Completed counts at a glance. In the builder, two new input types — Dropdown and multi-screen — make longer forms cleaner and easier to navigate.

Plan: Growth, Pro, Business

Watch demo →

🔧 Improvements

Finally see what's happening inside your chatbots

Why this matters
There was no visibility into chatbot performance. Drop-offs were invisible, and optimizing a flow meant guessing.

The update
Chatbot Analytics is now live for all customers. A new dashboard shows sessions, completions, drop-off rates, and reassignment rates across every bot. In Flow Builder, turn on "Show performance" to see exactly where contacts fall off right on the flow. Hit "Logs" to pull up every session, filter, export, or jump straight into a conversation in Team Inbox.

Plan: Growth, Pro, Business

Learn more →

Chatbot Analytics Dashboard Demo ->

Chatbot Performance Demo ->

Connect Instagram directly, no Facebook Page required

Why this matters
Every extra step during setup is a chance for a customer to drop off before getting value from your product. Removing the Facebook Page requirement means more teams can get live on Instagram without depending on someone else's admin access.

The update
Instagram now connects directly from Wati Channels using an Instagram for Business login. No Facebook Page linking needed. Log in, approve access, done.

Plan: Growth, Pro, Business

Learn more →

HTTP links in contact attributes are now clickable

Why this matters
URLs in contact attributes showed as plain text. You had to copy, paste, and open them manually every time.

The update
Any URL stored in a contact attribute now opens with one click, in both the contact view and Team Inbox. No more copying and pasting.

Plan: Growth, Pro, Business

Watch Demo ->

New Google Sheets row triggers a WhatsApp message automatically

Why this matters
The Google Sheets plugin needed a manual trigger after a new row was added. Automations required a nudge and weren't truly hands-free.

The update
Adding a new row now automatically triggers the WhatsApp message you've configured in the Google Sheets automation plugin. No manual action needed.

Plan: Growth, Pro, Business

Watch demo →

🐛 Bug Fixes

Fixed: Template messages now auto-assign new conversations

Why this matters
When an agent sent a template to a new or unassigned contact, replies came in without an owner and sat unattended.

The update
When a template is sent to a new or unassigned contact, the conversation is now auto-assigned as soon as a reply arrives.

Plan: Growth, Pro, Business

Learn More ->