Frequently Asked Questions

General Questions

What is OpenClaw?

OpenClaw is an open-source personal AI assistant that connects Claude (Anthropic’s AI) to your favorite messaging platforms like WhatsApp, Telegram, Discord, and more. It runs on your own hardware, giving you privacy and control over your conversations.

Visit the official website at openclaw.ai or explore the source code on GitHub.

Is OpenClaw free to use?

OpenClaw itself is free and open-source (MIT license). However, you’ll need an Anthropic API key, which has associated costs based on usage. Anthropic offers a free tier for getting started.

What AI model does OpenClaw use?

OpenClaw uses Claude, Anthropic’s AI assistant. By default, it uses claude-sonnet-4-20250514, but you can configure it to use other Claude models like Opus or Haiku depending on your needs and budget.

Is my data safe with OpenClaw?

Yes. Since OpenClaw runs on your own infrastructure, your conversations stay on your hardware. Messages are sent to Anthropic’s API for processing but are not stored or used for training by Anthropic according to their API terms.

Tip

For maximum privacy, you can configure OpenClaw to not log conversations locally.

Setup & Installation

What are the system requirements?

• Python: 3.10 or higher
• RAM: 512MB minimum, 1GB recommended
• Disk: 100MB for base installation
• Network: Stable internet connection
• OS: macOS, Linux, Windows, or Docker

Can I run OpenClaw on a Raspberry Pi?

Yes! OpenClaw runs well on Raspberry Pi 4 or newer. For Pi 3, you may experience slower response times due to limited RAM.

How do I update OpenClaw?

cd openclaw
git pull origin main
pip install -r requirements.txt --upgrade

Can I run multiple channels simultaneously?

Absolutely. OpenClaw can connect to WhatsApp, Telegram, Discord, and other channels all at the same time from a single instance.

Channels & Platforms

Which messaging platforms are supported?

Platform	Status	Notes
WhatsApp	✅ Stable	Via WhatsApp Web
Telegram	✅ Stable	Bot API
Discord	✅ Stable	Bot API
Slack	✅ Stable	App/Bot API
iMessage	✅ Stable	macOS only
SMS	⚡ Beta	Via Twilio
Email	⚡ Beta	IMAP/SMTP
Signal	🔧 Alpha	Limited

Does OpenClaw work in group chats?

Yes, with some platforms:

• Telegram: Works in groups with proper bot configuration
• Discord: Works in servers and channels
• Slack: Works in channels and threads
• WhatsApp: Works but requires careful rate limiting

Why does WhatsApp require QR code scanning?

OpenClaw uses WhatsApp Web protocol, which requires authentication via QR code. This is WhatsApp’s security measure - there’s no official API for personal accounts.

Can I use OpenClaw with my existing WhatsApp number?

Yes. OpenClaw connects as a “device” on your account, similar to WhatsApp Web. Your number and conversations remain yours.

Features & Capabilities

What can OpenClaw do?

OpenClaw inherits Claude’s capabilities:

• Answer questions and have conversations
• Help with writing and editing
• Code assistance and debugging
• Analysis and research help
• Creative tasks like brainstorming
• Translation and language help

Can OpenClaw access the internet?

By default, no. Claude doesn’t have real-time internet access. However, you can extend OpenClaw with plugins that provide web search, weather data, or other online information.

Can I customize OpenClaw’s personality?

Yes! You can set a system prompt in your configuration to define OpenClaw’s personality, tone, and behavior:

# In .env
SYSTEM_PROMPT="You are a helpful assistant named Jarvis. Be concise and friendly."

Does OpenClaw remember conversations?

OpenClaw maintains context within a session. The default context window varies by model (100K+ tokens for Claude 3). For long-term memory, you can implement plugins or use hooks.

Can OpenClaw send/receive images?

Support varies by channel:

• Telegram: Full image support (send/receive)
• Discord: Full image support
• WhatsApp: Image receiving supported
• Others: Check specific channel docs

Troubleshooting

Why is OpenClaw responding slowly?

Common causes:

1. API latency: Anthropic’s servers may be busy
2. Large context: Long conversations slow responses
3. Network: Check your internet connection
4. Model choice: Opus is slower than Sonnet/Haiku

Why am I getting “Rate Limit” errors?

You’ve exceeded Anthropic’s API rate limits. Solutions:

• Wait a few minutes
• Upgrade your API tier
• Reduce message frequency

OpenClaw stopped responding. What should I do?

1. Check the logs for errors
2. Verify your API key is valid
3. Ensure channel connections are active
4. Try restarting OpenClaw

See our Troubleshooting Guide for detailed solutions.

Costs & Pricing

How much does it cost to run OpenClaw?

Costs depend on usage:

• OpenClaw: Free (open source)
• Anthropic API: ~$3/M input tokens, ~$15/M output tokens for Sonnet
• Hosting: Free if running on your own hardware

A casual user might spend $1-5/month on API costs.

How can I reduce API costs?

1. Use Haiku model for simple tasks (CLAUDE_MODEL=claude-3-haiku-20240307)
2. Reduce context length
3. Implement message caching for repeated queries
4. Set up usage limits in configuration

Development & Contributing

How can I contribute to OpenClaw?

• Report bugs and request features on GitHub Issues
• Submit pull requests for improvements
• Improve documentation
• Share your plugins and extensions

Can I build custom plugins?

Yes! OpenClaw has a plugin system. See our Plugin Development Guide to get started.

What license is OpenClaw under?

MIT License - you’re free to use, modify, and distribute OpenClaw, including for commercial purposes.

Still Have Questions?

• Join GitHub Discussions
• Check the official documentation
• Search existing issues