WhatsApp (pywhats)

Drive a WhatsApp account as a linked companion device (like WhatsApp Web) from async Python via pywhats (pre-alpha, text/image only). This is an unofficial multi-device client — not the official WhatsApp Business / Cloud API.

CLI entrypoint: scripts/wa.py (auto-bootstraps a managed venv on first run).

Mental model

• Pairing = one-time QR scan. wa.py pair shows an ASCII QR; scan it in WhatsApp → Linked Devices. Credentials persist to $PYWHATS_HOME/<session>.session (+ .signal.db).
• Resuming = silent. Later commands reconnect with the same session — no QR.
• JIDs address chats. Bare phone 15550001234 → 15550001234@s.whatsapp.net; groups use ...@g.us.
• Events are how you receive. wa.py listen prints one JSON object per event.

⚠️ Never bare-await Client calls inside a handler

Event handlers run inline on the receive loop. Awaiting send_*, mark_read, get_group_info, download_media, etc. inside a handler deadlocks the connection. Always asyncio.create_task(...). The listen subcommand already does this for --read.

Commands

scripts/wa.py pair                                          # one-time QR pair
scripts/wa.py send-text 15550001234 "hello"                 # 1:1 text
scripts/wa.py send-image 15550001234 photo.jpg --caption hi # 1:1 image
scripts/wa.py group-info 120363000000000000@g.us            # group metadata JSON
scripts/wa.py group-send 120363000000000000@g.us "hi all"   # group text
scripts/wa.py mark-read 15550001234 MSGID [--sender JID]    # blue ticks
scripts/wa.py presence available                            # global presence
scripts/wa.py typing 15550001234 composing [--media audio]  # typing indicator
scripts/wa.py listen --read --events message,receipt        # JSONL event stream
scripts/wa.py --session work send-text 15550001234 "hi"     # named session

Command	Behavior
pair	Fresh link via ASCII QR; idempotent if already paired
send-text <to> <text>	Send 1:1 text; print message id
send-image <to> <path> [--caption C]	Send image (jpg/png/webp, ≤16MB); print id
group-info <gid>	Print group JSON (subject, owner, participants, …)
group-send <gid> <text>	Resolve members then send group text; print id
mark-read <chat> <ids...>	Blue-tick; --sender for groups
presence <available|unavailable>	Global presence
typing <to> <composing|paused>	Chat presence; optional --media audio
listen	Long-running JSON lines; --read, --events, --subscribe JID (required for presence events)

Global: --session NAME (default default, or env PYWHATS_SESSION) — goes before the subcommand: wa.py --session work pair.

Sessions / multi-account

$PYWHATS_HOME/                 # default: ~/.pywhats
  venv/                        # managed Python + pywhats
  default.session              # --session default
  default.session.signal.db
  work.session                 # --session work

Override home with PYWHATS_HOME. Unpaired / logged-out sessions print a clear message to re-run wa.py --session <name> pair.

If pair reports the device was logged out right after scanning, that is WhatsApp device-churn reaping, not a failure of the skill — the dead session is deleted automatically; follow the recovery steps it prints (remove linked devices, wait 15–20 min, pair once).

Full reference

references/api.md — every Client method, every event payload, JID construction, and the download_media note.