How to Integrate OpenClaw with Telegram for 24/7 AI Assistance

# How to Integrate OpenClaw with Telegram for 24/7 AI Assistance

**Category:** AI Agents & Task Runners **Author:** Melissa Carter **Tags:** OpenClaw, Telegram, integration, AI bot, AI assistant, tutorial

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Hey everyone,

One of the most powerful features of **OpenClaw** is its ability to integrate with messaging apps like Telegram. This turns your personal AI assistant into a 24/7 companion you can interact with from anywhere.

Here’s a quick guide on how to set it up.

## Why Integrate with Telegram?

- **Accessibility:** Interact with your AI assistant from your phone, tablet, or desktop. - **Notifications:** Get real-time updates and alerts from your agents. - **Delegation:** Delegate tasks to OpenClaw on the go. - **Privacy:** Telegram offers end-to-end encryption for secure communication.

## Step 1: Create a Telegram Bot

First, you need to create a new bot in Telegram.

1. **Open Telegram** and search for the **BotFather**. 2. **Start a chat** with the BotFather and send the `/newbot` command. 3. **Follow the prompts:** - Give your bot a name (e.g., "My Personal AI Assistant"). - Give your bot a username (e.g., "MyAIAssistantBot"). 4. **BotFather will give you a token.** This is your bot's API key. **Copy it and keep it safe!**

## Step 2: Configure OpenClaw

Now, you need to tell OpenClaw about your new Telegram bot.

1. **Open your `.env` file** in the OpenClaw directory. 2. **Add the following lines:**

``` TELEGRAM_BOT_TOKEN=your_telegram_bot_token TELEGRAM_WEBHOOK_URL=your_ngrok_or_public_url ```

- Replace `your_telegram_bot_token` with the token you got from BotFather. - `TELEGRAM_WEBHOOK_URL` is the public URL that Telegram will use to send messages to your OpenClaw instance. If you're running OpenClaw locally, you'll need to use a tool like **ngrok** to expose your local server to the internet.

## Step 3: Set Up a Webhook with ngrok (for local development)

If you're running OpenClaw on your local machine, you need a way for Telegram's servers to reach it. `ngrok` is the perfect tool for this.

1. **Download and install ngrok.** 2. **Run the following command** in a new terminal window:

```bash ngrok http 8000 ```

3. **ngrok will give you a public URL** (e.g., `https://random-string.ngrok.io`). This is your webhook URL.

4. **Update your `.env` file** with this URL:

``` TELEGRAM_WEBHOOK_URL=https://random-string.ngrok.io/telegram/webhook/ ```

**Note:** Make sure to add `/telegram/webhook/` to the end of the URL.

## Step 4: Restart OpenClaw

For the changes to take effect, you need to restart your OpenClaw server and worker.

## Step 5: Start Chatting!

Now you can open Telegram, find your bot, and start a conversation. Any message you send will be processed by OpenClaw.

## Example Use Cases

- **"Summarize my unread emails."** - **"What are the top 5 news stories about AI today?"** - **"Add 'buy milk' to my todo list."** - **"What's on my calendar for tomorrow?"**

OpenClaw will process your request and send the response back to you in Telegram.

This is just the beginning. With Telegram integration, OpenClaw becomes a truly powerful and accessible personal AI assistant.

Has anyone else set this up? I'd love to hear how you're using it!

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