Hermes Agent v0.17: The Reach Release — iMessage, Raft Network, and 180K Stars

Hermes Agent v0.17.0 shipped June 19, 2026. The team calls it "The Reach Release." v0.16.0 put Hermes on your desktop. v0.17.0 is about how far that reach extends.

1,475 commits. 800 merged PRs. 300+ issues closed. 245 community contributors. And now 180,000+ GitHub stars.

The headline features: iMessage without a Mac relay. A Raft-based agent network. Image-to-image editing across all providers. Cursor Composer via xAI Grok. Background subagents.

Sources: Hermes Agent v0.17.0 release notes

iMessage via Photon Spectrum — No Mac Needed

This is the big one. Previous Hermes-iMessage setups required a Mac relay (BlueBubbles). v0.17.0 replaces that with Photon Spectrum, a gRPC-native protocol that connects directly.

Run hermes photon login, authenticate with a device code, and you get emoji reactions, media support, and full bidirectional messaging. It's the successor to BlueBubbles and it removes the Mac requirement entirely.

Three PRs landed for this: the Photon protocol itself (#32348), the iMessage platform adapter (#42582), and the desktop app integration (#44713).

Raft Agent Network — Privacy-By-Contract Multi-Agent

Raft is a bundled platform adapter that lets you wake Hermes instances with metadata-only payloads. The privacy contract means no message content leaves your machine during routing.

Set RAFT_PROFILE, run the bridge, and you have a multi-agent network where coordination happens without exposing conversation content. This is the foundation for team-scale Hermes deployments.

Desktop App Gets Serious

The desktop app that shipped in v0.16.0 matures significantly:

• Rebindable keyboard shortcuts
• Native OS notifications with per-type toggles
• Live subagent watch-windows
• VS Code Marketplace theme install
• RTL/bidi text support
• Resizable terminal pane
• Per-thread drafts
• Mac-style session switcher (^Tab / ^1-9)
• Desktop pets pop-out overlay

The composer got a model selector with per-model presets. The sidebar is worktree-aware. Arrow-key history in the composer. Inline command expansion. Follow-streaming-at-bottom mode.

Background Subagents — Async Without Blocking

delegate_task(background=true) dispatches an async subagent and returns a handle immediately. The result re-enters as a new turn when done. This means you can fire off parallel work without waiting.

Two PRs (#40946, #46968) built this. It's the difference between "my agent is stuck thinking" and "my agent is doing five things at once."

Image-to-Image Editing Across All Providers

image_generate now accepts a source image plus an edit prompt. Routes to the backend edit endpoint. Works across all providers.

This is a meaningful step beyond "generate from scratch." Edit an existing image, refine a composition, change lighting. One PR (#48705) added it.

Automation Blueprints — No Cron Syntax Required

Parameterized templates replace cron expressions. The dashboard shows a form, you answer questions like "Daily news briefing at 8am," and it builds the automation. Slash command trigger. Dashboard trigger.

One PR (#41309) delivered this. It lowers the barrier for non-technical users.

Cursor Composer via xAI Grok

grok-composer-2.5-fast lands in the OAuth picker. 200k context window. No separate API key needed — it uses your xAI OAuth session.

This bridges the gap between Hermes' multi-agent orchestration and Cursor's composer mode. One PR (#47908).

Dashboard Profile Builder

Full profile creation from the browser. Pick your model, configure skills, add MCPs. Multi-profile management with a global switcher.

Two PRs (#39084, #44007) built this. It means you can spin up a new Hermes profile without touching config files.

Skills Hub Rehaul

Connected hubs. Featured section. Full previews. Security scans on listed skills.

Two PRs (#40384, #43398) delivered this. The old skills picker was functional. This one is discoverable.

memory Tool: Atomic Batch Operations

The memory tool now accepts an operations array. Add, replace, and remove entries in a single call. Applied atomically against the character budget.

This solves a real pain point. Previously, clearing space and adding new entries required multiple calls with risk of hitting the limit mid-operation. One PR (#48507).

WhatsApp Business Cloud API — Official, First-Party

Meta's first-party WhatsApp Business Cloud API joins as a platform. No bridge process needed. Direct API integration.

Two PRs (#44331, #43921) landed this. It's the most reliable WhatsApp path for Hermes users who need business messaging.

Telegram Rich Messages

Bot API 10.1 support, on by default with opt-out. Rich formatting, buttons, inline keyboards.

One PR (#44829) delivered this.

Secure Dashboard Login

401 on unauthenticated endpoints. WebSocket auth. Warning on rejected public_url.

One PR (#42578). This addresses a real security gap — the dashboard was previously too permissive.

Curator Cost Optimization

Skill consolidation is now opt-in (curator.consolidate: true). Deterministic pruning runs for free. LLM-based consolidation is off by default.

One PR (#47840). This cuts the cost of maintaining a large skill collection.

Should You Upgrade?

Upgrade if:

• You use iMessage — Photon Spectrum removes the Mac relay requirement entirely
• You run team deployments — Raft network + background subagents change the game
• You want image editing — image-to-image across all providers is a meaningful step up
• You manage multiple profiles — the dashboard profile builder eliminates config file editing

Install:

pip install --upgrade hermes-agent

Source: Hermes Agent GitHub releases