Guides
Channels Guide
Deploy your agents across 20+ communication channels. One agent, every platform your customers and team already use.
Channels are the communication platforms where your agents interact with users. HeartBeatAgents supports 20+ channels out of the box. A single agent can be deployed across every channel simultaneously, delivering consistent, context-aware responses wherever your customers and team members already communicate.
How Channels Work
Every channel connection follows the same pattern:
- Navigate to Settings → Integrations → Channels in your dashboard.
- Select the platform and complete authentication (OAuth, bot token, or API key depending on the platform).
- Configure platform-specific settings (which workspace channels to monitor, which phone number to use, etc.).
- Assign one or more agents to the channel.
- Your agent is live. Messages flow in, responses flow out.
Setup typically takes under two minutes per channel. No code, no webhooks to configure manually, no infrastructure to manage.
Supported Channels
Team Messaging
Slack, Microsoft Teams, Discord. Your agents join your internal workspace as team members. They monitor designated channels, respond in threads, handle direct messages, and support slash commands. Ideal for internal operations: IT help desks, knowledge bases, sales enablement, and DevOps alerts.
Customer Messaging
WhatsApp, Telegram, Facebook Messenger, Instagram DMs, WeChat. Meet your customers on the platforms they already use every day. Agents handle text, images, documents, and interactive elements (buttons, quick replies, carousels) native to each platform. WhatsApp Business API, Meta Business Suite, and Telegram BotFather integrations are all supported.
Gmail, Outlook, SendGrid, custom SMTP. Agents read incoming emails, draft replies, and send responses. Thread context is preserved across multi-message email chains. Attachments are supported for both inbound and outbound messages.
SMS and Voice
Twilio SMS, Twilio Voice. Agents send and receive text messages and handle voice interactions. SMS is ideal for appointment reminders, order updates, and two-factor verification flows. Voice support enables phone-based customer service with real-time transcription and response.
Web and Embedded
Web Chat widget, API. Embed a chat widget on any website with a single script tag, or build fully custom experiences using the Agent API. The widget supports custom theming, file uploads, typing indicators, and responsive mobile layout. For headless deployments, the API lets you integrate agent conversations into any application, workflow tool, or automation platform.
Social Media
X (Twitter), LinkedIn, YouTube, Reddit, TikTok. Agents monitor mentions, respond to comments, handle direct messages, and manage social presence across platforms. Engagement context is preserved so the agent understands the full conversation history.
Support Platforms
Zendesk, Intercom, Freshdesk, ServiceNow. Agents plug directly into your existing support infrastructure. They triage incoming tickets, draft responses, escalate when needed, and pull customer context from connected CRM and billing integrations to deliver personalized support.
Multi-Channel Architecture
When an agent is deployed across multiple channels, each channel maintains its own conversation threads. A customer reaching out on WhatsApp and the same customer emailing later will have separate conversation histories. However, the agent's long-term memory is shared across all channels. Context learned in a Slack conversation, such as a customer preference or a resolved issue, is immediately available when that customer contacts via any other channel.
This means your agent delivers consistent, informed responses regardless of where the conversation happens. No information is lost between channels. No repeated questions. One agent, one memory, every touchpoint.
Channel-Specific Behavior
Agents automatically adapt their output format to match the conventions of each platform:
- Rich formatting (Markdown, embeds, cards) on platforms that support it (Slack, Discord, Web Chat).
- Plain text with concise responses on SMS and platforms with character limits.
- Interactive elements (buttons, quick replies, inline keyboards) on WhatsApp, Telegram, and Messenger.
- Thread-aware replies on Slack, Discord, and email to keep conversations organized.
- Media handling (images, files, voice notes) on platforms that support attachments.
No configuration is needed for format adaptation. The agent reads the channel context and adjusts automatically.