OpenClaw
Self-hosted AI assistant that runs on your own devices and talks to you in your chat apps.
- Stars
- 394k
- Forks
- 82.7k
- Licence
- MIT
- Language
- TypeScript
- Last update
- 4 days ago
- Type
- App
What it is
OpenClaw is an open-source AI assistant that runs on your own computer and connects to chat services you already use, such as Telegram, Slack, Discord, WhatsApp, and iMessage. A central Gateway process handles sessions, tools, and channel connections, and you can pick which model provider or agent harness it uses. People use it to have a personal assistant that keeps its state, memory, and credentials on their own hardware.
- Chat with an AI assistant through Telegram, Slack, Discord, or other connected channels
- Connect different model providers or local models and switch between them
- Run a personal assistant on a laptop, or a shared assistant for a team
- Use the Control UI or TUI to manage sessions and tools
Great for
- People who want an AI assistant that runs on their own machine rather than a hosted service
- Developers comfortable with Node.js and command-line setup
- Teams that want a shared Gateway deployment, per the README's team deployment option
- Users who want to talk to an assistant through existing messaging apps
Not ideal for
- People who want a no-setup hosted service: the README says there is no hosted tier, so you run it yourself
- Anyone who cannot safely lock down inbound messages: the README says tools run on the host by default unless sandboxing is configured
- Users who need to expose the Gateway to others without reading the security guide first
How to get it
- 1
Install with a package manager
You'll need: Node.js 24.22.1+ or 26.12.1+ (Node 26 recommended), or use the installer script which provisions Node.js
Install via npm (if you already manage Node.js)
npm install -g openclaw@latest --allow-scripts=openclawRun onboarding after a direct npm, pnpm, or Bun install
openclaw onboard --install-daemon - 2
Run it
- Run the installer or the npm install command for your platform
- Complete the onboarding wizard, which verifies model access and configures the Gateway
- Run `openclaw gateway status` to check the Gateway is running
- Run `openclaw dashboard` to open the Control UI and send a test message
- 3
Get the most out of it
- Connect a messaging channel such as Telegram, Slack, or Discord using the channels guide
- Add tools, skills, and plugins to extend what the assistant can do, with ClawHub listed as a source
- Enable sandboxing before connecting other users or exposing the Gateway remotely, per the security guide
- Set update.checkOnStart to false if you want to disable the daily version check and opt-in statistics
Downloads
Strengths
- Runs locally, with state, memory, and credentials stored on your own hardware per the README
- Supports many messaging channels and native apps for macOS, iOS, Android, Windows, and Linux
- MIT licensed with no paid tier or hosted service mentioned in the README
Trade-offs
- Tools run on the host for the main session unless you configure sandboxing, which carries security risk
- Setup involves a Gateway, channels, and model configuration, so it is not a single click for newcomers
- The README is truncated, so some details on specific features and limits are unclear
How it compares
| Project | Stars | Type | Level | Updated | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| openclaw (this) | 394k | App | intermediate | 4 days ago | People who want an AI assistant that runs on their own machine rather than a hosted service |
| paperclip | 110k | App | advanced | 4 days ago | Developers already running several AI coding agents who want one place to track them |
| nanobot | 49.8k | App | intermediate | 4 days ago | People who want a self-hosted personal assistant they can inspect and customize |
| CowAgent | 47.8k | App | intermediate | 4 days ago | People who want a self-hosted personal assistant reachable from their everyday chat apps |
| open-notebook | 41.3k | App | intermediate | 4 days ago | People who want NotebookLM-style research tools without sending their material only to Google |
| leon | 17.6k | App | intermediate | 4 days ago | Developers who want to inspect or extend an open-source assistant |
Stats synced from GitHub. The assessment above was drafted with AI from the project's README on 2026-10-29 and may miss recent changes — check the README before relying on a command. MIT licence: free to use, modify and distribute, including commercially, as long as you keep the copyright notice.