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OpenClaw/Moltbot/Clawdbot Installation Guide & How To Use It

This guide teaches you how to install and set up your own autonomous agent using OpenClaw, formerly called Clawdbot and Moltbot.

advanced 4 steps

Introduction

This guide teaches you how to install and set up your own autonomous agent using OpenClaw, formerly called Clawdbot and Moltbot. You will produce a working OpenClaw bot that can be configured with search, an AI provider, memory hooks, and Telegram messaging. The setup involves collecting API keys, installing the CLI, running onboarding, and pairing the bot with Telegram.

Don’t get distracted. Skip all the frills and only install one skill at a time.

Step-by-step 4 steps

Instructions

  1. Step 1 of 4

    Gather your keys and create a Telegram bot

    Before you start setup, collect the keys you will need and save them in a notes file.

    • Register a free Brave account and get a Brave API key so your bot can use search.
    • Get a fresh API key from your AI provider: OpenAI, Claude, or Gemini.
    • In Telegram, search for the user “BotFather” and start a new chat.
    • Click “Create a New Bot,” then give it a name and a handle that ends with “bot.”
    • Copy the unique Telegram bot key and save it to your notes for onboarding.
    botfatherpng
  2. Step 2 of 4

    Install the CLI and complete onboarding

    Make sure Node is installed and up to date. You need Node version 22 or higher to use the Moltbot CLI.

    Install the Moltbot CLI with: curl -fsSL https://openclaw.bot/install.sh | bash

    Run the onboarding wizard with: sudo openclaw onboard --install-daemon

    moltbot_onboarding
    • Select “Quickstart.”
    • Select your AI provider and paste in your token.
    • Say yes to Brave search when prompted and paste your API key.
    • Select Telegram as your channel. This is where you will message your bot.
    • Skip the Google Places API information if you do not need it. The source notes that it is for things like weather updates.
    • Select all the hooks so the bot can develop its memory each day.
    Pro tip: Don’t get distracted. Skip all the frills and only install one skill at a time.
  3. Step 3 of 4

    Start the introduction wizard

    After setup, you will be taken into the introduction wizard. At this point, you are talking with your OpenClaw bot.

    moltbot-setup
  4. Step 4 of 4

    Pair your bot with Telegram

    • Search for your bot’s username in Telegram.
    • Send it a message.
    • Copy the pairing code it gives you.
    • Open Terminal and run this command, replacing <CODE> with your pairing code: openclaw pairing approve telegram <CODE>

    You can now message your bot through Telegram.

    Pro tip: You may have to try the clawdbot or moltbot command if openclaw does not work. That happened when this guide was recorded.

You're done

That's the whole workflow

Mark it complete to save your progress. Background and answers to common questions follow below.

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Overview Back to the steps

Background and context

Who This Is Useful For

  • Anyone with a laptop and an AI subscription
  • Tinkerers trying to learn more about custom agents
  • People who want a proactive AI assistant

What You Will Build

You will build and configure your own OpenClaw bot. The example bot in the source, named Botthew, designed and deployed a status website and represented its sub-agents “Sandstorm” and “Crawler.”

  • A local OpenClaw/Moltbot setup
  • A connected AI provider key
  • Brave search access
  • A Telegram bot channel for messaging your agent
  • Memory hooks selected during onboarding

What You Need

  • ChatGPT Plus is recommended, or Google AI Pro for Gemini + Nano Banana, or Claude Pro.
  • A MacBook. Linux and Windows may work, but the source notes that Moltbot is tailored to Mac.
  • A backup or wiped computer is strongly recommended because this is experimental, open-source code.
  • If you install on your primary MacBook, complete a full Time Machine backup first.
  • Node version 22 or higher.
  • A Brave API key for search.
  • A fresh API key from OpenAI, Claude, or Gemini.
  • A Telegram bot key created through BotFather.

Going Further

  • Give Moltbot a Gemini key from AI Studio and ask it to use Nano Banana Pro to generate a Telegram avatar.
  • Ask it to send a 7AM report each morning with the weather and its goal for the day.
  • Connect Gmail so OpenClaw can monitor your inbox, or use a free agentmail inbox and forward mail to it.
  • After your Moltbot has an email address, sign it up for GitHub so it can deploy websites through GitHub Pages.
son-of-botthew