OpenClaw

OpenClaw is an open source AI assistant that runs on your own computer and meets you in the channels you already use, from Discord and Slack to iMessage, Telegram and WhatsApp, with native apps for macOS, iOS, Android, Windows and Linux. It removes the need to sit in a vendor's chat window to reach an assistant.

A single Gateway acts as the local control plane for sessions, tools, events and channel connections, and the Control UI, the CLI and the TUI all connect to it. The same process serves one person on a laptop or a whole team, and only the configuration differs.

The pieces that matter for anyone weighing a self-hosted assistant.

• Local state: memory, credentials and session data stay on your hardware, and the project itself checks only for a daily version update.
• Swappable models: hosted and local providers plug in, so Claude, Codex or a local model becomes a configuration choice.
• Channels: WhatsApp, Telegram, Slack, Discord, Google Chat, Signal and iMessage all reach the same assistant.
• Companion apps: platform nodes add voice, canvas, camera, screen and device-local actions.
• Tools, skills and plugins: three extension points widen what the assistant can actually do.

The installer covers macOS, Linux and Windows and provisions a Node.js runtime when one is missing, with an npm package for people who manage Node themselves. Treat inbound messages as untrusted, since tools run on the host unless you configure sandboxing. Stewardship sits with an independent nonprofit foundation, and there is no paid tier or hosted service.