OpenClaw - An Open-Source AI Personal Assistant with 140K GitHub Stars in 2 Months

Lately, a project called OpenClaw has been making huge waves in the developer community.

It's hard to believe, but it hit 140K GitHub stars in just 2 months, with 2 million weekly visitors.

What exactly is it that's causing all this buzz?

What is OpenClaw?

OpenClaw is a locally-running open-source AI personal assistant.

Unlike ChatGPT or Claude where you chat on the web, it runs directly on your computer and actually does work for you.

Organizing emails and sending replies
Managing calendar events
File organization and search
Web browser control
Writing and executing code

Think of it as a real assistant, not just a chatbot.

Why is it so popular?

1. Completely Free (Open Source)

It's MIT licensed, so anyone can use it for free. Much cheaper than paying $20/month for ChatGPT Plus. Just bring your API key.

2. 50+ Integrations

It supports almost every messenger: WhatsApp, Telegram, Discord, Slack, iMessage, Signal, and more.

You can also connect Gmail, GitHub, Spotify, Obsidian, and even Twitter.

3. Local Execution = Privacy

Since your data stays on your computer, there's less worry about personal information. You can safely process confidential company documents.

4. A True "Agent"

Other AI chatbots just exchange text, but OpenClaw actually takes action.

When you say "Schedule a meeting for tomorrow," it actually adds the event to your calendar.

The Name's History

The original name was Clawdbot. It was a parody of Claude, but apparently Anthropic's legal team reached out.

So they changed it to Moltbot, and finally settled on OpenClaw.

Installation

It's simpler than you might think.

Quickest Method

curl -fsSL https://openclaw.ai/install.sh | bash

Install via npm

npm install -g openclaw@latest
openclaw onboard --install-daemon

Requirements

Node.js 22 or higher
Supports Mac, Windows, and Linux

Key Features

Chat App Integration

You can chat with OpenClaw through almost any messenger: WhatsApp, Telegram, Discord, Slack, Signal, iMessage, Microsoft Teams, and more.

Persistent Memory

It remembers conversation history and user preferences. Once you say "I like coffee," it remembers forever.

Browser Control

It can directly control the browser for web searches, form filling, data extraction, and more.

Skill Extensions

You can install community-made skills or create your own custom skills.

Voice Wake + Talk Mode

Say "Hey Claw" and you can have a voice conversation.

Security Considerations

OpenClaw is powerful, but that also means security risks.

Potential for prompt injection attacks
Risk of management interface exposure
Credentials stored in local config files

It's a tool suited for developers who know how to handle security. Regular users should use it with caution.

My Thoughts

Honestly, at first I thought it was just another AI tool.

But after actually using it, the feeling of "an AI that actually does work" really hit me.

If ChatGPT is "a friend who gives you answers," OpenClaw is "an assistant who does the work for you."

Of course, it's still early stage so there are bugs and some complex settings. But since it's open source, the community is quickly making improvements.

If you want to feel AI truly entering your daily life, I recommend giving OpenClaw a try.