The new Hermes Agent update has me speechless....

Alex Finn ·2026-06-24 ·2 min read

Summary written by us from the video's transcript. The video, and everything in it, is Alex Finn's work.

Learn the eight major features of the latest Hermes Agent update and how to start using them today.

Takeaways

iMessage integration via Photon lets you query Hermes on the go without leaving your native messaging app.
Background agents now run automatically and are visualized in a sub‑agent tree, enabling continuous conversation during long tasks.
Hermes can control Unreal Engine 5.8 MCP, opening AI‑driven 3D game development for free.
The desktop app adds multi‑window chats, quick model switching, and an embedded terminal for seamless workflow.
Profiles and the Skills hub simplify creating specialized agents and installing new capabilities without manual config edits.

Native iMessage Integration

Hermes now connects directly to iMessage, letting you chat with your agent from your phone. Send queries like “Micron price and why it moved” and receive fully formatted replies, including investor reports, right in the messaging app.

The integration uses a free service called Photon, which provides a phone number that routes texts to Hermes. Hooking it up requires running a single command—"Hook Hermes up to iMessage using Photon…"—and following a login link.

Automatic Background Agents

Background agents, previously enabled by flipping a flag, now activate automatically when you give Hermes a sufficiently complex prompt. Sub‑agents run tasks in the background while you continue chatting with the main agent.

A new sub‑agent tree visualizes each spawned agent, its tool calls, and progress, so you can monitor multiple parallel jobs (e.g., five agents making 28 tool calls for research) and add new requests on the fly.

Unreal Engine 5.8 MCP Support

Hermes can now drive Unreal Engine 5.8’s new Model‑Centric Programming (MCP), allowing AI‑generated creation of complex 3D games directly from prompts.

This capability is free and lets you move beyond lightweight browsers like three.js to build high‑quality first‑person or third‑person shooters that can be published on platforms such as Steam.

Enhanced Desktop App

The desktop client now lets you open any chat in its own window via right‑click → New Window, supporting true multitasking with multiple agents side by side.

A model selector at the bottom enables quick switching of models and reasoning levels without editing config files, and an integrated terminal lets you run commands inside Hermes itself.

Profile Builder in Dashboard

Running "Hermes dashboard" opens a web‑based interface where you can create new profiles—separate Hermes agents with distinct models and skill sets—through a guided onboarding flow.

Profiles simplify multi‑agent workflows (e.g., a coding‑focused "Coder", a memory manager "Librarian") without manual config file edits.

Skills Hub & Security Scans

The dashboard’s Skills hub now offers a browseable catalog of hundreds of installable skills, with details and one‑click security scans to verify safety.

You can also feed a skill.md file to Hermes and ask it to generate a custom, secure version tailored to your use case.

Improved Memory & Skill Updates

Hermes now self‑improves more aggressively, automatically patching and updating its own skills after each interaction (e.g., refining the Unreal Engine MCP skill).

No user action is required—simply give Hermes more prompts and it will continuously enhance performance through these self‑improvement reviews.

Telegram Formatting Enhancements

Hermes leverages Telegram’s latest features to deliver richly formatted output: tables, lists, bold text, smoother word streaming, and custom layouts.

This makes Telegram a viable alternative for detailed data presentations, such as stock tables with descriptions, prices, and market caps.