OpenClaw
OpenClaw is a personal AI assistant that runs on your own devices and connects to the messaging channels you already use. It provides a local-first gateway for multi-channel communication with AI across platforms like WhatsApp, Telegram, Slack, Discord, and many others.
Key Features
- Multi-channel support — Works with 20+ messaging platforms including WhatsApp, Telegram, Slack, Discord, Signal, iMessage, Teams, and more
- Voice capabilities — Speech recognition and text-to-speech on macOS, iOS, and Android
- Local-first architecture — Runs entirely on your infrastructure with your own API keys
- Multi-agent routing — Route different channels to isolated AI agents and workspaces
- Cross-platform — Supports macOS, Linux, and Windows (via WSL2)
- Multiple AI providers — Works with OpenAI, Anthropic, and other model providers
Installation
Requires Node.js 24 (recommended) or Node.js 22.16+
npm install -g openclaw@latest
openclaw onboard --install-daemon
The onboard command guides you through setting up the gateway, configuring channels, and connecting AI models.
Basic Usage
Start the gateway daemon:
openclaw gateway --port 18789 --verbose
Send a message through any connected channel:
openclaw message send --to +1234567890 --message "Hello from OpenClaw"
Interact with the AI assistant:
openclaw agent --message "Create a project checklist" --thinking high
OpenClaw uses a pairing system for DM security by default. Unknown senders receive a pairing code that must be approved before the assistant processes their messages.
Notable Details
License: MIT
Language: TypeScript
Community: 330K+ GitHub stars, active Discord community
Development: Actively maintained with stable, beta, and dev release channels
The project emphasizes data ownership and privacy by running entirely on your infrastructure rather than cloud services.