What Is OpenClaw? The Complete Guide to the AI Assistant Everyone Is Talking About

You probably heard about OpenClaw from a friend, a tweet, or the Lex Fridman podcast (episode #491). You saw someone demo an AI assistant that lives on WhatsApp, browses real websites, books restaurants, and sends emails -- all from a messaging app. And your first thought was: I want that.

This guide explains exactly what OpenClaw is, what it can do, how it works under the hood, and how to actually get it running. Whether you are technical enough to self-host or want a managed option that skips the infrastructure entirely, this covers all of it.

What Is OpenClaw?

OpenClaw is an open-source, personal AI assistant that you run on your own hardware (or someone else's). It connects to the messaging apps you already use -- WhatsApp, Telegram, Slack, Discord, Signal, iMessage, Microsoft Teams, and more -- and responds like a smart, capable assistant who can actually do things in the real world.

That last part is important. Most AI tools are chatbots. You type a question, they give you text. You copy-paste it somewhere else. The interaction ends there.

OpenClaw is different. It has a real browser it can control. It can visit websites, fill out forms, check prices, and interact with web apps on your behalf. It has a task scheduler so it can run jobs automatically. It can send and read email. It can take screenshots, record your screen, and respond to voice commands.

The project launched on GitHub and now has over 189,000 stars, making it one of the fastest-growing open-source projects in 2026. The creator appeared on Lex Fridman's podcast, and the clip went viral. The result: a massive wave of people trying to set up their own OpenClaw instance.

How OpenClaw Works

OpenClaw runs as a Gateway -- a control plane that manages connections to your messaging channels, your AI model, and your tools.

Here is the architecture in plain terms:

Your messaging apps (WhatsApp, Telegram, Slack, etc.)
               |
               v
     OpenClaw Gateway (the brain)
               |
               +-- AI Model (Claude, GPT, Gemini, etc.)
               +-- Browser (real Chrome/Chromium)
               +-- Tools (email, cron, webhooks)
               +-- Skills (plugins that add capabilities)
               +-- Nodes (your phone, your Mac, your Android)

When you send a message on WhatsApp saying "find me a flight to Lisbon for next weekend under $400," here is what happens:

1. WhatsApp channel receives the message and passes it to the Gateway.
2. Gateway routes it to the AI agent.
3. AI agent reads the message, decides it needs the browser, and opens a flight search site.
4. Browser navigates the site, enters the search criteria, reads the results.
5. AI agent formats the best options and sends them back through the Gateway.
6. WhatsApp channel delivers the response to your phone.

All of this happens without you switching apps. You stay in WhatsApp (or Telegram, or whatever you use). The AI does the rest.

The Model Layer

OpenClaw is model-agnostic. You bring your own AI model subscription:

• Anthropic (Claude Pro or Max) -- recommended for long-context tasks and better security against prompt injection
• OpenAI (ChatGPT/Codex)
• Google (Gemini)
• Any other model that supports the standard API

You authenticate with your existing subscription. No extra AI costs beyond what you already pay.

The Skills System

Skills are plugins that extend what OpenClaw can do. The project ships with bundled skills, and the community creates additional ones.

This is where things get interesting -- and where security starts to matter. More on that below.

What Can OpenClaw Actually Do?

Here is a non-exhaustive list, organized by category:

Communication

• Read and reply to messages across WhatsApp, Telegram, Slack, Discord, Signal, iMessage, Microsoft Teams, Google Chat, and WebChat
• Send and read emails from a dedicated inbox
• Join and participate in group chats (with configurable activation -- mention-based, always-on, or manual)

Browsing and Research

• Browse real websites using a dedicated Chrome/Chromium instance
• Fill out forms, check prices, compare options
• Take snapshots of web pages
• Upload files to websites

Automation

• Run tasks on a schedule (cron jobs) -- "check this stock price every morning at 8am"
• Respond to webhooks -- trigger actions when external events happen
• Monitor Gmail via Pub/Sub -- react to incoming emails in real time

Voice

• Voice Wake on macOS, iOS, and Android -- say its name and start talking
• Talk Mode for continuous conversation (like a voice assistant, but smarter)
• Text-to-speech via ElevenLabs

Device Integration

• Take photos and screen recordings from your phone or Mac
• Get your current location
• Send system notifications
• Run local commands on macOS (with permission controls)

Visual

• Live Canvas -- an agent-driven visual workspace that the AI can push content to
• A2UI (Agent-to-UI) for rendering interactive interfaces

The key difference from ChatGPT, Claude, or Gemini as standalone products: OpenClaw does not live in a browser tab. It lives in your messaging apps. It has persistent memory across conversations. And it can take action in the real world without you copy-pasting anything.

Channels OpenClaw Supports

OpenClaw supports more messaging platforms than any other AI assistant:

Most people start with WhatsApp or Telegram since those are the most common personal messaging apps. But the multi-channel architecture means your AI can be present everywhere you communicate.

How to Get Started with OpenClaw

There are two paths: self-host it yourself, or use a managed hosting service.

Option 1: Self-Host

OpenClaw is fully open-source (MIT license). You can run it on:

• Your own Mac -- the easiest self-hosting path. Native support, macOS app with menu bar control, Voice Wake, and full device integration.
• A VPS (Virtual Private Server) -- DigitalOcean, AWS, Hetzner, or any Linux server. This is the most common approach for always-on availability.
• Docker -- containerized deployment for people comfortable with containers.

The self-hosted route requires Node.js 22 or later. The recommended installation:

npm install -g openclaw@latest
openclaw onboard --install-daemon

The onboarding wizard walks you through setting up the gateway, connecting your AI model, pairing channels, and installing skills.

What to know before you start: Self-hosting is powerful but not trivial. You will need to handle server provisioning, networking, SSL certificates, security hardening, and ongoing maintenance. The deployment tutorial on this blog covers the full process step by step.

For a detailed comparison of self-hosting vs managed hosting, read our OpenClaw Hosting Guide.

Option 2: Managed Hosting

If you do not want to manage infrastructure, managed hosting services handle everything for you. You sign up, the service provisions a dedicated OpenClaw instance, and you connect your messaging channels.

ClawBox is one such service. You sign up, click deploy, and get your own dedicated OpenClaw instance running in about 2 minutes. No VPS, no terminal, no Docker.

What makes managed hosting worth considering:

• Time -- skip the 80+ hours of setup, configuration, and debugging
• Security -- proper firewall rules, isolated infrastructure, vetted skills
• Browser -- most VPS setups are headless (no GUI). Managed services like ClawBox include a real browser so your AI can actually browse the web.
• Maintenance -- updates, patches, and monitoring are handled for you

The tradeoff is cost ($25-50/month for most services) and less granular control over the configuration.

Security Considerations

This is the part most guides skip, and it is the part that matters most.

OpenClaw is a powerful tool. It connects to your messaging apps, has access to a browser, can run commands on your system, and executes skills written by the community. That power comes with real security implications.

Skill Supply Chain Risk

Anyone can write an OpenClaw skill. Anyone can distribute one. A skill has access to your file system, your browser, your email -- whatever OpenClaw has access to.

There is a documented post on Reddit's r/hacking about community skills being used as attack vectors to steal data from users' machines. This is not theoretical -- it is the reality of any open plugin ecosystem.

What to do about it:

• Only install skills from authors you trust
• Read the source code of any community skill before installing it
• Or use a managed service with curated skills -- ClawBox, for example, vets every skill before making it available, similar to how Apple's App Store reviews apps before they go live

Credential Handling

When your AI needs to log into a website, how are credentials handled? On a headless VPS (which is what most self-hosted setups use), there is no browser GUI. Credentials pass through the AI or environment variables.

Services like ClawBox solve this with browser takeover -- you can take control of the AI's browser, log into your accounts yourself, and hand it back. Your passwords never touch the AI.

DM Security

OpenClaw connects to real messaging platforms. By default, it uses a pairing policy -- unknown senders receive a pairing code and their messages are not processed until you approve them. This prevents random people from interacting with (or attacking) your AI through DMs.

Run openclaw doctor to check your DM security configuration.

Network Security

If you self-host on a VPS, you need to configure firewalls, restrict open ports, and set up authentication for the Gateway dashboard. OpenClaw supports Tailscale Serve/Funnel for secure remote access without exposing ports directly.

Use Cases

Here is how people are actually using OpenClaw:

Personal Productivity

• Morning briefing -- "Every day at 7am, check my calendar, summarize my emails, check the weather, and send me a summary on Telegram"
• Research -- "Find me the 5 best-reviewed restaurants in Rome near the Colosseum, check availability for Saturday at 8pm, and book the best one"
• Monitoring -- "Check this product page every hour and tell me when the price drops below $200"

Professional Use

• Email triage -- "Read my inbox, flag anything urgent, draft replies for the routine ones"
• Scheduling -- "Coordinate with John and Sarah to find a time next week that works for all three of us"
• Data gathering -- "Visit these 10 competitor websites and create a spreadsheet comparing their pricing tiers"

Developer Workflows

• Monitoring -- "Watch this GitHub repo for new issues tagged 'bug' and summarize them for me daily"
• Automation -- "When I push to this branch, run these checks and send me the results on Slack"

Family and Household

• Grocery lists -- "Add milk, eggs, and bread to the family shopping list and share it with the household group"
• Travel planning -- "Plan a 5-day trip to Barcelona for a family of four in March. Budget: $3,000. Find flights, hotels, and activities."

The common thread: these are tasks you could do yourself, but they eat time. OpenClaw handles them while you do something more valuable.

OpenClaw vs ChatGPT, Claude, and Gemini

The question comes up a lot: "Why do I need OpenClaw if I already pay for ChatGPT?"

It is not an either/or. OpenClaw uses models like ChatGPT and Claude as its brain. The difference is the body.

Think of it this way: ChatGPT is a brilliant consultant who can only talk. OpenClaw is a brilliant assistant who can talk and do the work.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is OpenClaw free?

OpenClaw is open-source and free to use. You need to bring your own AI model subscription (Anthropic, OpenAI, etc.), which typically costs $20/month. If you self-host on a VPS, the server costs $5-20/month depending on the provider. Managed hosting services like ClawBox charge $49/month and include the infrastructure.

Is OpenClaw safe?

OpenClaw's core code is open-source and auditable. However, community skills (third-party plugins) can pose security risks. Be selective about which skills you install, or use a managed service with curated skills. Run openclaw doctor to check your setup for security issues.

Does OpenClaw work with WhatsApp?

Yes. WhatsApp is one of the most popular channels. OpenClaw connects via the Baileys library. You pair it with your WhatsApp account through a QR code, similar to WhatsApp Web.

Do I need to be technical to use OpenClaw?

To self-host: yes, you need comfort with the command line, Node.js, and ideally some experience with servers. To use a managed service: no, you just sign up and connect your channels.

Can OpenClaw access my files?

On a self-hosted setup, OpenClaw has access to whatever the host environment allows. On a managed service like ClawBox, the AI runs in an isolated environment with curated skills, so its access is controlled and limited to what you grant.

How does OpenClaw differ from Siri, Alexa, or Google Assistant?

Traditional voice assistants are closed ecosystems with predefined capabilities. OpenClaw is open-source, extensible, and model-agnostic. It can do anything a human can do in a browser, plus anything the skill ecosystem supports. It is also not limited to voice -- it works through text, voice, and visual interfaces.

What AI models does OpenClaw support?

OpenClaw works with Claude (Anthropic), GPT (OpenAI), Gemini (Google), and any model that exposes a compatible API. You authenticate with your own subscription. The recommended model is Claude Pro/Max with Opus 4.6 for its long-context handling and prompt injection resistance.

Can I use OpenClaw for my business?

Yes. OpenClaw is MIT-licensed. You can use it personally, professionally, or commercially. Some people run separate agents for personal and work use cases.

Getting Started Today

If you have read this far and want to try OpenClaw, you have two paths:

Self-host it: Follow our complete deployment tutorial. Budget a weekend for the first setup. You will need a VPS or a Mac that can stay online, Node.js 22+, and some patience.

Skip the setup: ClawBox deploys your own dedicated, secure OpenClaw instance in 2 minutes. Real browser, curated skills, isolated infrastructure. $49/month.

Either way, once OpenClaw is running, the experience is the same: an AI assistant that lives on your phone, remembers everything, and actually does things.

The hardest part of using AI should not be installing it.