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WhatsApp conversations route through . When the AI hands off a WhatsApp thread, your rep picks it up as a live chat inside the Zendesk and replies on the same number the customer wrote in on.

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Pre-requisites

Connect your WhatsApp Business number first. No WhatsApp messages can reach OpenCX until the channel is live — start with Connect WhatsApp and come back here.

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How conversations land in Zendesk

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Setting up

1

Confirm WhatsApp is connected

Open Channels → WhatsApp in the OpenCX dashboard. Your WhatsApp Business number should be listed and active.
2

Confirm Sunshine is connected

In Settings → Integrations, open Zendesk → Messaging. The status should show Active.
3

Trigger a test handoff

Send a WhatsApp message to your connected number and ask to speak to a human. The AI should hand off.
4

Verify in the Zendesk Agent Workspace

The conversation should appear as a live chat tagged opencx_channel_whatsapp. Reply from the Agent Workspace and confirm the response lands on the customer’s WhatsApp.

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What the rep sees

  • A live chat in the Agent Workspace tagged opencx_channel_whatsapp.
  • The contact’s WhatsApp profile (name, phone number) attached via the Sunshine user.
  • Full transcript of the AI-to-customer exchange so far.
  • opencx_session_id on the conversation — the trace key to the full OpenCX session.
  • Replies land on the customer’s WhatsApp within a couple of seconds.

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Channel-specific details

WhatsApp’s policy lets reps send free-form messages within 24 hours of the customer’s last message. Outside that window, replies must use an approved . The Agent Workspace surfaces this constraint — reps will see template picker UI instead of the plain reply box.
OpenCX matches Sunshine messaging contacts to existing Zendesk support users when possible. WhatsApp contacts merge primarily on the phone number, and on email if the customer has shared one. No duplicate contact records.
Images, audio, and documents the customer sends on WhatsApp appear as attachments on the Sunshine conversation in the Agent Workspace. Size limits follow WhatsApp’s per-media-type limits.
Sending a WhatsApp template-message campaign from OpenCX is independent of the Zendesk integration — see the WhatsApp channel docs. Replies to a template land as a Sunshine conversation in the Agent Workspace once the customer engages.

AI WhatsApp Support

The channel itself — connect, messaging rules, templates.

Sunshine Conversations setup

Credentials, webhook, and user merge.

Zendesk overview

What else Zendesk lights up across every channel.

Troubleshooting

Duplicate contacts, replies not reaching WhatsApp.