# Hermes Agent v0.17.0: iMessage and Raft channels, background subagents, image editing

> Large release adding two new places Hermes can run — iMessage via Photon's managed line pool (no Mac relay or BlueBubbles bridge) and the Raft agent network via a wake-channel bridge — plus background subagent delegation, image-to-image editing in `image_generate`, and `grok-composer-2.5-fast` reachable through an xAI Grok OAuth subscription. The desktop app and dashboard both gained substantial surface. Matters if you run Hermes for yourself or a team on any of these channels.

| | |
|---|---|
| **Tool** | Hermes Agent |
| **Version** | v2026.6.19 |
| **Kind** | release |
| **Published** | 2026-06-19 |
| **Observed** | 2026-08-11 |
| **Significance** | 4/5 |
| **Breaking** | no |
| **Categories** | feature, capability, model-support, security |

## What changed


- **iMessage (Photon Spectrum):** platform plugin on Photon's managed line pool; `hermes photon login` with a device code, then send/receive iMessage with no self-hosted Mac relay. Positioned as the BlueBubbles successor
- **Raft:** bundled platform adapter connecting Hermes to raft.build as an external agent over a wake-channel bridge; set `RAFT_PROFILE` and run the bridge. Wake payloads carry only metadata (event IDs, timestamps), never message bodies
- **Background subagents:** `delegate_task(background=true)` returns a handle immediately; result re-enters the conversation as a new turn when it finishes
- **Image editing:** `image_generate` accepts a source image plus prompt and routes to the backend's edit endpoint, across every supported image provider
- **Automation Blueprints:** one blueprint definition renders as a dashboard form, a CLI/TUI/messenger slash command, an agent conversation, and a docs catalog entry — no cron syntax
- **Models:** `grok-composer-2.5-fast` added to the xAI OAuth model picker, context window reconciled to 200k
- **Desktop:** rebindable shortcuts, native OS notifications with per-type toggles, subagent watch-windows streaming delegated activity, composer model selector with per-model presets, automatic RTL/bidi, resizable VS Code-themed terminal pane, per-thread composer drafts, install any VS Code Marketplace theme
- **Dashboard:** full profile builder (model, skills, MCP servers) without hand-editing `config.yaml`; unified machine-wide multi-profile view with a global profile switcher
- Also cited: Skills Hub browser rehaul, `memory` tool upgrade, curator no longer spends aux-model budget on routine runs, 300+ issues closed, security round
- Scale since v0.16.0: ~1,475 commits, ~800 merged PRs, 1,693 files changed, 245 community contributors


## Sources

- [github_release](https://github.com/NousResearch/hermes-agent/releases/tag/v2026.6.19) — retrieved 2026-08-11

## Community

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Canonical: https://changelogs.info/hermes-agent/v2026-6-19
Entity: https://changelogs.info/hermes-agent
Event ID: `evt_2026-06-19_hermes-agent_v2026-6-19`
Licence: event synthesis © changelogs.info, CC BY 4.0. Linked sources belong to their vendors.