OpenClaw

OpenClaw is a new-generation AI assistant that can not only answer questions but also perform actions on your behalf. Unlike conventional chatbots, OpenClaw has full access to your system and can automate day-to-day tasks.

Key features

• Compatibility with popular messaging apps.

• Local execution and privacy:

  • Support of popular models, including those in Yandex AI Studio.
  • Complete control over access to the system.

• Browser management:

  • Automatically viewing web pages.
  • Filling out forms.
  • Fetching data from any website.

• Complete access to the system:

  • Reading and writing files.
  • Running shell commands.
  • Running scripts.
  • Working in sandbox mode.

• Persistent memory:

  • Memorizes your preferences.
  • Maintains context across sessions.
  • Serves as your personalized helper.

• Extendibility through Skills and Plugins:

  • Installing skills from ClawHub.
  • Creating your own extensions.
  • AI can write new skills on its own.

• Mobile apps:

  • iOS app with Canvas support.
  • Android app with Canvas support, chat, and camera.

Integrations

OpenClaw supports over 50 services, including GPT, Claude, Spotify, Philips Hue, Obsidian, Twitter, Gmail, GitHub, and many others.

1. Create a network and a subnet.

2. Set up a NAT gateway for your new subnet.

3. Create a security group in your new network and add rules:

   Traffic direction	Description	Port range	Protocol	Source / Destination	CIDR blocks
   Inbound	Control UI	18789	TCP	CIDR	0.0.0.0/0
   Inbound	SSH	22	TCP	CIDR	0.0.0.0/0
   Outbound	Any	All	Any	CIDR	0.0.0.0/0

4. Get an SSH key pair to connect to a virtual machine.

5. Create an API key for accessing Yandex Cloud models.

6. Create a VM from a public image:

   1. Under Boot disk image on the Marketplace tab, select OpenClaw.

   2. Under Network settings, select the network, subnet, and security group you created earlier.

   3. Under Access:

      • Enter the username in the Login field.
      • Paste the contents of the public SSH key file in the SSH key field.

   4. Expand the Additional section and select the service account you created earlier.

   Save the VM’s public IP address.

7. Connect to the VM over SSH. Use the username you set when creating the VM and the private SSH key you created before.

8. Follow the wizard’s instructions to configure OpenClaw.

   Below is a configuration that will make the AI assistant run as fast as possible.

   1. Onboarding mode → QuickStart
   2. Model/auth provider → Skip for now
   3. Filter models by provider → All providers
   4. Default model → Enter model manually
   5. Default model → yandex/gpt://<folder_ID>/gpt-oss-120b/latest
   6. Select channel (QuickStart) → Skip for now
   7. Configure skills now? (recommended) → No
   8. Enable hooks? → Skip for now
   9. How do you want to hatch your bot? → Do this later

9. Stop the installation by pressing CTRL + C.

10. Open the ~/.openclaw/openclaw.json file and edit it as follows:

    1. Make sure the defaults.workspace, defaults.model.primary, and models properties are specified correctly in the agents section.

       "agents": {
         "defaults": {
           "workspace": "/home/<VM_username>/.openclaw/workspace",
           "model": {
             "primary": "yandex/gpt://<folder_ID>/gpt-oss-120b/latest"
           },
           "models": {
             "yandex/gpt://<folder_ID>/gpt-oss-120b/latest": { "alias": "gpt-oss-120b" }
           }
         }
       },
       

       Replace <folder_ID> with your folder ID in Yandex Cloud.

    2. Add the models section:

       "models": {
         "providers": {
           "yandex": {
             "baseUrl": "https://llm.api.cloud.yandex.net/v1",
             "apiKey": "<API_key>",
             "api": "openai-completions",
             "models": [
               {
                 "id": "gpt://<folder_ID>/gpt-oss-120b/latest",
                 "name": "gpt-oss-120b",
                 "contextWindow": 131072,
                 "maxTokens": 8192,
                 "reasoning": false,
                 "input": "text",
                 "cost": { "input": 0, "output": 0, "cacheRead": 0, "cacheWrite": 0 }
               }
             ]
           }
         }
       },
       

    Replace <folder_ID> with your folder ID in Yandex Cloud and <API_key>, with the key you got earlier.

11. Restart the wizard:

    openclaw onboard --install-daemon
    

    For the AI assistant to run as fast as possible, select the following options:

    1. I understand this is powerful and inherently risky. Continue? → Yes

    2. Config handling → Use existing values

    3. Model/auth provider → Skip for now

    4. Filter models by provider → All providers

    5. Default model → Keep current

    6. Select channel (QuickStart) → Skip for now

    7. Configure skills now? (recommended) → No

    8. Enable hooks? → Skip for now

    9. Gateway service already installed → Restart

       Result:

       ...
       ◇  Dashboard ready ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────╮
       │                                                                                 │
       │  Dashboard link (with token):                                                   │
       │  http://127.0.0.1:18789/#token=647ac8be9921fd43c6a7241506cdb138121e4879 │
       │  Copy/paste this URL in a browser on this machine to control OpenClaw.          │
       │  No GUI detected. Open from your computer:                                      │
       │  ssh -N -L 18789:127.0.0.1:18789 yc-user@10.0..                               │
       │  Then open:                                                                     │
       │  http://localhost:18789/                                                        │
       │  http://localhost:18789/#token=647ac8be9921fd43c6a7241506cdb138121e4879 │
       ...
       └  Onboarding complete. Use the dashboard link above to control OpenClaw.
       

12. In the new terminal, create an SSH tunnel:

    ssh -N -L 18789:127.0.0.1:18789 <VM_username>@<VM_public_IP_address>
    

13. In your browser, open Control UI by following the link you got after restarting the wizard:

    http://localhost:18789/#token=<token>
    

14. On the Chat tab of Control UI, send a message to the AI assistant:

    Hi!
    

    Result:

    Hi! What can I do for you?
    

Managing email and calendar

# Clearing mailbox
> Check my inbox and delete all promotional emails over the last week

Analyzing your inbox...
Found 47 promotional emails from 12 senders.
Deleting the emails...
That's it! Deleted 47 emails. Freed 156 MB.

# Scheduling a meeting
> Schedule a team meeting for next Tuesday at three p.m.

Checking the participants' calendars...
All participants are free on Tuesday at three p.m.
Creating the _Team meeting_ event between three and four p.m.
Sending invinations: John, Mary, Gregory.
Meeting scheduled!

Automating trips

# Check-in for a flight
> Check me in for tomorrow's flight to New York

Opening the airline website...
Found your booking: SU1234, departure at 10:30 a.m.
Checking in...
Selecting window seat (as per your preferences).
Check-in complete! The boarding pass has been saved to ~/Documents/boarding_pass.pdf

# Booking a hotel
> Find and book a hotel in downtown New Yourk for three a.m.

Searching for hotels rated four and above within two km from the center...
Found 15 options. The best price-quality relationship:
The Sunny Inn: $160 per night, rated 4.7.
Booking on your behalf:
Booking confirmed! Booking number: MET-789456

Working with files and data

# Document analysis
> Find all contract PDF files over 2024 and create a summary table

Scanning the ~/Documents directory...
Found 23 contract PDF files.
Fetching data: contract number, date, counterparty, sum...
Creating a summary table in ~/Documents/contracts_2024.xlsx
That's it! Sum total for your contracts: 4,567,890 ₽

# Backups
> Back up all pictures over this month to an external drive

Finding pictures over January 2024...
Found 847 files amounting to 12.3 GB.
Copying to /Volumes/Backup/Photos/2024-01/...
Progress: 100%
Backup complete!

Monitoring and notifications

# Monitoring prices
> Monitor the MacBook Pro price on the Apple website and tell me when there is a discount

Setting up price monitoring...
Current price: 249.990 ₽
I will check every six hours and notify you in Telegram when the price is reduced.

[In three days, in Telegram]
🎉 The MacBook Pro price has dropped!
Previously: 249.990 ₽
Now: 224.990 ₽ (-10%)
Link: https://apple.com/ru/shop/buy-mac/macbook-pro

Working with code and development

# Automating Git
> Create a new branch for the automation feature and set up CI

Creating the feature/auth branch from `main`...
Branch created: feature/auth
Adding a basic auth structure...
Creating github/workflows/auth-tests.yml
Commit: "feat: initial auth module structure"
Push to origin/feature/auth is complete.
PR created: #42 "Feature: User Authentication"

Yandex Cloud technical support is available 24/7. The types of requests you can submit and the relevant response times depend on your pricing plan. You can switch to the paid support plan in the management console. You can learn more about the technical support terms and conditions here.