🦞OpenClaw Guide

Features

Everything OpenClaw Can Do

A personal AI assistant with persistent memory, multi-channel messaging, real automation capabilities, and complete privacy — all self-hosted on your own hardware.

Why OpenClaw is Different

Not another chatbot. A fundamentally different approach to AI assistance.

🧠

True Persistent Memory

Not just chat history — a knowledge graph that learns your preferences, remembers your projects, and builds context over months and years.

vs. ChatGPT forgets you between sessions

💬

Multi-Channel by Design

WhatsApp, Telegram, Discord, CLI — same AI, same memory, wherever you are. No context switching.

vs. Other AIs are trapped in a browser tab

🔒

Actually Self-Hosted

Runs on your hardware. Not 'self-hosted but phones home' — genuinely private and offline-capable.

vs. Cloud AI trains on your data

⚡

Real Actions, Not Drafts

'Send the email' sends it. 'Add to calendar' adds it. OpenClaw executes, not just suggests.

vs. ChatGPT drafts, you still copy-paste

🔧

Infinitely Extensible

Skills system lets you add any integration. MCP support for advanced tool use. Community-built skills.

vs. Limited plugins with approval gates

💰

Free & Open Source

No subscription. No usage limits. Just your API costs (~$5-20/month for most users).

vs. $20-200/month for premium AI tiers

⭐

Core Features

What sets OpenClaw apart from every other AI assistant

🧠
Persistent MemoryCore
Your AI remembers everything — your projects, preferences, and past conversations — forever. No more re-explaining yourself.

Learn more →

🔒
Self-Hosted & PrivateCore
Runs 100% on your machine. Your data never leaves your network. Fully open source and auditable.

Learn more →

💬

Messaging

Chat with your AI wherever you already are

📱
WhatsApp Integration
Text your AI just like a friend. Get help, reminders, and automations right in WhatsApp.

Learn more →

✈️
Telegram Bot
Full Telegram integration with inline buttons, voice messages, and instant responses.

Learn more →

🎮
Discord Bot
Bring your AI to your Discord server. Works in DMs and channels.

Learn more →

🎙️
Voice Messages
Send voice notes, get voice responses. True hands-free AI assistance via Whisper and TTS.

Learn more →

⚡

Automation

AI that actually does things, not just talks about them

✉️
Email Automation
Read, draft, and send emails. Summarize your inbox. Reply on your behalf (with confirmation or autonomously).

Learn more →

📅
Calendar Management
Check your schedule, create events, get smart reminders. Works with Google Calendar and Apple Calendar.

Learn more →

🏠
Smart Home Control
Control lights, thermostats, locks via Home Assistant. 'Turn off all lights' actually does it.

Learn more →

⏰
Scheduled Tasks
Morning briefings, daily summaries, recurring reminders. Set it once, runs forever.
🧠

Intelligence

Beyond basic chatbots — real AI capabilities

🌐
Web Search & Browsing
Your AI can search the web, read pages, and summarize findings. Research on autopilot.
📖
Document Processing
Analyze PDFs, summarize documents, extract key information. Handle your paperwork.
📷
Image Understanding
Send photos, get analysis. Read receipts, identify objects, describe scenes.
🔧
Extensible Skills
Add custom integrations via the skill system. If there's an API, OpenClaw can use it.
🛡️

Privacy & Control

Your data, your rules

💻
Runs Locally
Install on your laptop, desktop, or server. Nothing ever phones home.
🔑
Bring Your Own Keys
Use OpenAI, Anthropic, or local models like Ollama. Your API keys, your control.
📖
Open Source
Every line of code is public on GitHub. Audit it, modify it, own it.

Learn more →

✈️
Works Offline
With local models, run completely air-gapped. No internet required.

Deep Dives

Explore our core features in detail

🧠
AI Assistant with Memory That Remembers Everything
ChatGPT forgets you exist between sessions. OpenClaw remembers everything—your projects, preferences, and past conversations—forever.
  • ✓Persistent memory across all conversations
  • ✓Learns your preferences over time
  • ✓Cross-channel memory

Read full guide →

🔒
Self-Hosted AI Assistant
Cloud AI sends every conversation to corporate servers. OpenClaw runs entirely on your machine—conversations never leave your network.
  • ✓Runs 100% on your machine
  • ✓Bring your own API keys
  • ✓Open source and auditable

Read full guide →

🎙️
Voice-Controlled AI Assistant
Send a voice note on WhatsApp. Get an AI response. No typing, no apps, no friction. Your AI assistant is always a voice message away.
  • ✓Voice notes via WhatsApp/Telegram
  • ✓Real AI, not scripted responses
  • ✓Responds in voice or text

Read full guide →

⚡
AI Automation
ChatGPT can draft an email. OpenClaw sends it. Stop copying and pasting—let AI take real action on your behalf.
  • ✓Executes, not just suggests
  • ✓Connected to your tools
  • ✓Scheduled and triggered automations

Read full guide →

🦞

Ready to try OpenClaw?

Set up in 30 minutes. Free and open source. Your data stays on your machine.

No subscription required • Self-hosted • Open source