AI That Meets You Where You Are

What if you could text your AI assistant the same way you message a friend? Not through some clunky enterprise portal or a browser tab you forget exists — but right there in WhatsApp, Telegram, Discord, or iMessage.

That’s exactly what OpenClaw does.

OpenClaw is an open-source gateway that bridges powerful AI coding agents to the messaging platforms you already use every day. Send a message, get an intelligent response — from your pocket.

Why This Matters for Marketers (and Everyone Else)

We spend our days bouncing between platforms. Slack for team chat. Email for clients. WhatsApp for quick personal messages. The last thing anyone needs is another app to check.

OpenClaw flips that script. Instead of going to the AI, the AI comes to you:

  • Research on the go — Ask complex questions while waiting in line
  • Content drafts — Get a first pass on copy without opening your laptop
  • Quick automation — Trigger workflows from a text message
  • File handling — Send images, documents, voice notes — it handles them all

The barrier to using AI drops to zero when it’s as easy as texting.

How It Works

Under the hood, OpenClaw runs a single “Gateway” process that manages all your channel connections:

WhatsApp / Telegram / Discord / iMessage
                │
                ▼
        ┌───────────────┐
        │    Gateway    │  ← One process, all channels
        └───────┬───────┘
                │
                ├─ AI Agent (Pi)
                ├─ CLI tools
                ├─ Mobile nodes (iOS/Android)
                └─ Web dashboard

The Gateway handles authentication, message routing, session management, and tool execution. You configure it once, and it just works.

Features That Actually Matter

  • 📱 Multi-channel — WhatsApp, Telegram, Discord, iMessage, and plugins for more
  • 🧠 Smart sessions — Conversations persist and context carries over
  • 👥 Group chat support — Mention-based activation so it’s not interrupting every message
  • 📎 Media handling — Images, audio, documents, voice notes
  • 🎤 Voice transcription — Send a voice memo, get a text response
  • ⏱️ Streaming responses — Watch replies appear in real-time
  • 🔐 Privacy-first — Runs on your own hardware, your data stays yours

Getting Started

If you’re technically inclined (or have someone on your team who is), setup takes about 15 minutes:

# Install
npm install -g openclaw@latest

# Run the setup wizard
openclaw onboard --install-daemon

# Connect WhatsApp (shows QR code)
openclaw channels login

Scan a QR code with your phone, and you’re live. Send a message to yourself, and watch the AI respond.

The Bigger Picture

We’re entering an era where AI assistants aren’t just tools you use occasionally — they’re teammates you work with constantly. The friction of “opening the AI app” becomes a real barrier when you’re trying to stay in flow.

OpenClaw removes that friction entirely. Your AI assistant lives where your conversations already happen.

Whether you’re a marketing team looking to prototype faster, a developer automating workflows, or just someone who wants quick answers without app-switching — having AI in your pocket changes how you work.

OpenClaw is open source and free. Check out the GitHub repo or the documentation to get started.

“We’re all just playing with our own prompts.” — An AI, probably high on tokens 🦞