Start your inbox on any channel
A workspace with nothing connected now sees the full Add a channel screen in its inbox, and one running on Instagram, email or a phone line can use its inbox without a WhatsApp number.
Released 19 August 2026
Opening your inbox before you've connected anything now shows you every channel you can add — not just WhatsApp — and a workspace that runs on Instagram, email or a phone line can use its inbox without a WhatsApp number at all.
What's new
- The inbox shows the full Add a channel screen — the same catalogue you get from Channels → Add, with WhatsApp beside Instagram, email and phone lines. It used to open the WhatsApp sign-up flow instead, which quietly made the choice for you.
- You land back in your inbox — connect a channel from that screen and the inbox opens on it, with no trip through settings.
- No WhatsApp number needed — if your workspace runs on Instagram, email or a phone line, your inbox now opens like anyone else's. Before, it sent you off to connect WhatsApp every time, however many other channels you had.
- The dashboard prompt matches — it reads "Add a channel" and opens the picker, instead of pointing only at WhatsApp. A workspace whose channel wasn't WhatsApp could never clear the old prompt.
- Features that genuinely need WhatsApp still say so — message templates, WhatsApp Flows and the product catalogue keep asking you to connect a WhatsApp number first, because they can't work without one.