openclaw
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Multi-channel AI gateway with extensible messaging integrations
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Markdown
---
summary: "Broadcast a WhatsApp message to multiple agents"
read_when:
- Configuring broadcast groups
- Debugging multi-agent replies in WhatsApp
status: experimental
title: "Broadcast groups"
sidebarTitle: "Broadcast groups"
---
<Note>
**Status:** Experimental. Added in 2026.1.9. WhatsApp (web channel) only.
</Note>
## Overview
Broadcast groups run **multiple agents** on the same inbound message. Each agent processes the message in its own isolated session and posts its own reply, so one WhatsApp number can host a team of specialized agents in a single group chat or DM.
Broadcast groups are evaluated after channel allowlists and group activation rules. In WhatsApp groups, broadcasts happen when OpenClaw would normally reply (for example: on mention, depending on your group settings). They only change **which agents run**, never whether a message is eligible for processing.
The live WhatsApp QA lane includes `whatsapp-broadcast-group-fanout`, which verifies that one mentioned group message can produce distinct visible replies from two configured agents.
## Configuration
### Basic setup
Add a top-level `broadcast` section (next to `bindings`). Keys are WhatsApp peer ids, values are arrays of agent ids:
- group chats: group JID (e.g. `120363403215116621.us`)
- DMs: sender E.164 phone number (e.g. `+15551234567`)
```json
{
"broadcast": {
"120363403215116621@g.us": ["alfred", "baerbel", "assistant3"]
}
}
```
**Result:** when OpenClaw would reply in this chat, it runs all three agents.
Every listed agent id must exist in `agents.entries`: config validation reports unknown ids, and the runtime skips them with a `Broadcast agent <id> not found in agents.entries; skipping` warning.
### Processing strategy
`broadcast.strategy` sets how agents process the message:
| Strategy | Behavior |
| -------------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| `parallel` (default) | All agents process simultaneously; replies arrive in any order. |
| `sequential` | Agents process in array order; each waits for the previous to finish. |
```json
{
"broadcast": {
"strategy": "sequential",
"120363403215116621@g.us": ["alfred", "baerbel"]
}
}
```
### Complete example
```json
{
"agents": {
"entries": {
"code-reviewer": {
"default": true,
"name": "Code Reviewer",
"workspace": "/path/to/code-reviewer",
"sandbox": { "mode": "all" }
},
"security-auditor": {
"name": "Security Auditor",
"workspace": "/path/to/security-auditor",
"sandbox": { "mode": "all" }
},
"docs-generator": {
"name": "Documentation Generator",
"workspace": "/path/to/docs-generator",
"sandbox": { "mode": "all" }
}
}
},
"broadcast": {
"strategy": "parallel",
"120363403215116621@g.us": ["code-reviewer", "security-auditor", "docs-generator"],
"120363424282127706@g.us": ["support-en", "support-de"],
"+15555550123": ["assistant", "logger"]
}
}
```
## How it works
### Message flow
<Steps>
<Step title="Incoming message arrives">
A WhatsApp group or DM message arrives.
</Step>
<Step title="Route and admission">
OpenClaw applies channel allowlists, group activation rules, and configured ACP binding ownership.
</Step>
<Step title="Broadcast check">
If no configured ACP binding owns the route, OpenClaw checks whether the peer ID is in `broadcast`.
</Step>
<Step title="If broadcast applies">
- All listed agents process the message.
- Each agent has its own session key and isolated context.
- Agents process in parallel (default) or sequentially.
- Audio attachments are transcribed once before fan-out, so agents share one transcript instead of making separate STT calls.
</Step>
<Step title="If broadcast does not apply">
OpenClaw dispatches the ordinary route or the configured ACP session route selected during routing.
</Step>
</Steps>
<Note>
Broadcast groups do not bypass channel allowlists or group activation rules (mentions/commands/etc). They only change _which agents run_ when a message is eligible for processing.
</Note>
### Session isolation
Each agent in a broadcast group maintains completely separate:
- **Session keys** (`agent:alfred:whatsapp:group:120363...` vs `agent:baerbel:whatsapp:group:120363...`)
- **Conversation history** (an agent does not see other agents' replies)
- **Workspace** (separate sandboxes if configured)
- **Tool access** (different allow/deny lists)
- **Memory/context** (separate `IDENTITY.md`, `SOUL.md`, etc.)
One exception is shared on purpose: the **group context buffer** (recent group messages used for context) is shared per peer, so all broadcast agents see the same context when triggered. It is cleared once after the fan-out completes.
This allows each agent to have different personalities, models, skills, and tool access (for example read-only vs. read-write).
### Example: isolated sessions
In group `120363403215116621.us` with agents `["alfred", "baerbel"]`:
<Tabs>
<Tab title="Alfred's context">
```text
Session: agent:alfred:whatsapp:group:120363403215116621.us
History: [user message, alfred's previous responses]
Workspace: ~/openclaw-alfred/
Tools: read, write, exec
```
</Tab>
<Tab title="Baerbel's context">
```text
Session: agent:baerbel:whatsapp:group:120363403215116621.us
History: [user message, baerbel's previous responses]
Workspace: ~/openclaw-baerbel/
Tools: read only
```
</Tab>
</Tabs>
## Use cases
- **Specialized agent teams**: a dev group where `code-reviewer`, `security-auditor`, `test-generator`, and `docs-checker` each answer the same message from their own angle.
- **Multi-language support**: one support chat with `support-en`, `support-de`, `support-es` responding in their languages.
- **Quality assurance**: `support-agent` answers while `qa-agent` reviews and only responds when it finds issues.
- **Task automation**: `task-tracker`, `time-logger`, and `report-generator` all consume the same status update.
## Best practices
<AccordionGroup>
<Accordion title="1. Keep agents focused">
Give each agent a single, clear responsibility (`formatter`, `linter`, `tester`) instead of one generic "dev-helper" agent.
</Accordion>
<Accordion title="2. Use descriptive ids and names">
```json
{
"agents": {
"entries": {
"security-scanner": { "default": true, "name": "Security Scanner" },
"code-formatter": { "name": "Code Formatter" },
"test-generator": { "name": "Test Generator" }
}
}
}
```
</Accordion>
<Accordion title="3. Configure different tool access">
```json
{
"agents": {
"entries": {
"reviewer": {
"default": true,
"tools": { "allow": ["read", "exec"] }
},
"fixer": { "tools": { "allow": ["read", "write", "edit", "exec"] } }
}
}
}
```
`reviewer` is read-only. `fixer` can read and write.
</Accordion>
<Accordion title="4. Monitor performance">
With many agents, prefer `"strategy": "parallel"` (default), keep broadcast groups to a handful of agents, and use faster models for simpler agents.
</Accordion>
<Accordion title="5. Failures stay isolated">
Agents fail independently. One agent's error is logged (`Broadcast agent <id> failed: ...`) and does not block the others.
</Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>
## Compatibility
### Providers
Broadcast groups are currently implemented for WhatsApp (web channel) only. Other channels ignore the `broadcast` config.
### Routing
Broadcast groups work alongside existing routing:
```json
{
"bindings": [
{
"match": { "channel": "whatsapp", "peer": { "kind": "group", "id": "GROUP_A" } },
"agentId": "alfred"
}
],
"broadcast": {
"GROUP_B": ["agent1", "agent2"]
}
}
```
- `GROUP_A`: only alfred responds (normal routing).
- `GROUP_B`: agent1 AND agent2 respond (broadcast).
<Note>
**Precedence:** `broadcast` takes priority over ordinary route bindings. Configured ACP bindings (`bindings[].type="acp"`) are exclusive: when one matches, OpenClaw dispatches to the configured ACP session instead of fan-out broadcast.
</Note>
## Troubleshooting
<AccordionGroup>
<Accordion title="Agents not responding">
**Check:**
1. Agent IDs exist in `agents.entries` (config validation rejects unknown ids).
2. Peer ID format is correct (group JID like `120363403215116621.us`, or E.164 like `+15551234567` for DMs).
3. The message passed normal gating (mention/activation rules still apply).
**Debug:**
```bash
openclaw logs --follow | grep -i broadcast
```
A successful fan-out logs `Broadcasting message to <n> agents (<strategy>)`.
</Accordion>
<Accordion title="Only one agent responding">
**Cause:** the peer ID might be in ordinary route bindings but not `broadcast`, or it might match an exclusive configured ACP binding.
**Fix:** add ordinary route-bound peers to the broadcast config, or remove/change the configured ACP binding if fan-out broadcast is desired.
</Accordion>
<Accordion title="Performance issues">
If slow with many agents: reduce the number of agents per group, use lighter models, and check sandbox startup time.
</Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>
## Examples
<AccordionGroup>
<Accordion title="Example 1: Code review team">
```json
{
"broadcast": {
"strategy": "parallel",
"120363403215116621@g.us": [
"code-formatter",
"security-scanner",
"test-coverage",
"docs-checker"
]
},
"agents": {
"entries": {
"code-formatter": {
"default": true,
"workspace": "~/agents/formatter",
"tools": { "allow": ["read", "write"] }
},
"security-scanner": {
"workspace": "~/agents/security",
"tools": { "allow": ["read", "exec"] }
},
"test-coverage": {
"workspace": "~/agents/testing",
"tools": { "allow": ["read", "exec"] }
},
"docs-checker": { "workspace": "~/agents/docs", "tools": { "allow": ["read"] } }
}
}
}
```
One code snippet in the group produces four replies: formatting fixes, a security finding, a coverage gap, and a docs nit.
</Accordion>
<Accordion title="Example 2: Multi-language pipeline">
```json
{
"broadcast": {
"strategy": "sequential",
"+15555550123": ["detect-language", "translator-en", "translator-de"]
},
"agents": {
"entries": {
"detect-language": { "default": true, "workspace": "~/agents/lang-detect" },
"translator-en": { "workspace": "~/agents/translate-en" },
"translator-de": { "workspace": "~/agents/translate-de" }
}
}
}
```
</Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>
## API reference
### Config schema
```typescript
interface OpenClawConfig {
broadcast?: {
strategy?: "parallel" | "sequential";
[peerId: string]: string[];
};
}
```
### Fields
<ParamField path="strategy" type='"parallel" | "sequential"' default='"parallel"'>
How to process agents. `parallel` runs all agents simultaneously; `sequential` runs them in array order.
</ParamField>
<ParamField path="[peerId]" type="string[]">
WhatsApp group JID or E.164 phone number. Value is the array of agent IDs that should all process messages from that peer.
</ParamField>
## Limitations
1. **Max agents:** no hard limit, but many agents (10+) can be slow.
2. **Shared context:** agents do not see each other's responses (by design).
3. **Message ordering:** parallel responses may arrive in any order.
4. **Rate limits:** all replies come from one WhatsApp account, so every agent's reply counts toward the same WhatsApp rate limits.
## Related
- [Channel routing](/channels/channel-routing)
- [Groups](/channels/groups)
- [Multi-agent sandbox tools](/tools/multi-agent-sandbox-tools)
- [Pairing](/channels/pairing)
- [Session management](/concepts/session)