What Is ClawdBot? Everything You Need to Know

ClawdBot is a deployment and hosting wrapper around OpenClaw. It takes the raw CLI agent and packages it with a web UI, messaging integrations, persistent storage, and a setup wizard — so you can run OpenClaw as a service instead of a terminal tool.

If OpenClaw is the engine, ClawdBot is the car.

The Naming History

This confuses everyone, so let's clear it up.

The project started as MoltBot — an early experiment in wrapping AI agents with a web interface and chat integrations. As the project matured and OpenClaw became the dominant agent framework, MoltBot was rebuilt on top of OpenClaw and renamed to ClawdBot.

| Name | Period | What It Was | | ------ | -------- | ------------- | | MoltBot | Early 2025 | Original bot framework, custom agent logic | | ClawdBot | Mid 2025 – present | Rebuilt on OpenClaw, deployment/hosting wrapper | | OpenClaw | Ongoing | The core agent (CLI tool by Anthropic) |

So when you see old references to MoltBot, they're talking about the predecessor to ClawdBot. Same community, same project, new foundation.

What ClawdBot Adds Over Raw OpenClaw

OpenClaw by itself is a CLI tool. ClawdBot adds everything you need to run it as a persistent, accessible service:

Web UI

A browser-based interface for interacting with your OpenClaw agent. Send messages, view responses, browse conversation history — no terminal required. It's not fancy, but it works.

Messaging Integrations

This is ClawdBot's killer feature. It connects your OpenClaw agent to:

• WhatsApp — chat with your agent from your phone

• Telegram — lightweight bot interface with inline keyboards

• Discord — deploy as a server bot with slash commands

• Slack — integrate into your team's workspace as a bot user

• SMS — via Twilio integration for text-based access

You configure the integration, and your OpenClaw agent becomes reachable from any messaging platform. Ask it to do research from WhatsApp while you're commuting. Have it respond to customer queries in your Discord server. The agent is the same — ClawdBot just gives it more ears.

Persistent Storage

Raw OpenClaw sessions are ephemeral — when you close the terminal, the context is gone. ClawdBot adds persistent storage for:

• Conversation history across sessions

• Agent memory (facts it's learned about your preferences)

• File storage for generated assets

• Task state for long-running workflows

Setup Wizard

ClawdBot includes a guided setup flow that configures OpenClaw, sets up your model provider API keys, configures integrations, and gets everything running. Significantly easier than manual OpenClaw configuration.

How to Get ClawdBot

Two options:

Self-Host (Free)

ClawdBot is open source. You can deploy it on any server or VPS:

# Clone the repo
git clone https://github.com/clawdbot/clawdbot.git
cd clawdbot

# Copy environment template
cp .env.example .env

# Edit .env with your API keys and integration tokens
nano .env

# Start with Docker Compose
docker compose up -d

Popular deployment platforms:

| Platform | Starting Cost | Good For | | ---------- | -------------- | ---------- | | DigitalOcean | $6/mo | Simple VPS, good docs | | Railway | $5/mo | One-click deploy, auto-scaling | | Hetzner | $4/mo | Cheapest reliable option (EU) | | Fly.io | $0 (free tier) | Edge deployment, global | | AWS Lightsail | $5/mo | If you're already on AWS |

Managed Hosting

Several providers offer managed ClawdBot instances where they handle the infrastructure:

• Server provisioning and maintenance

• Automatic updates

• SSL certificates

• Backups

• Monitoring

Pricing for managed hosting typically runs $15-30/month on top of your API costs.

OpenClaw vs ClawdBot vs MoltBot

Here's the definitive comparison:

| Feature | OpenClaw | ClawdBot | MoltBot (deprecated) | | --------- | ---------- | ---------- | --------------------- | | Core agent | Yes (this IS the agent) | Uses OpenClaw | Had its own agent logic | | Interface | CLI only | Web UI + messaging | Web UI + messaging | | Built by | Anthropic | Community | Community | | Messaging integrations | No | WhatsApp, Telegram, Discord, Slack, SMS | Telegram, Discord | | Persistent storage | No | Yes | Yes | | Self-hostable | Yes (runs locally) | Yes | Yes | | Setup difficulty | Moderate (CLI) | Easy (wizard) | Easy (wizard) | | Active development | Very active | Active | Deprecated → ClawdBot |

Use OpenClaw when you're a developer who wants direct terminal access and full control.

Use ClawdBot when you want to deploy OpenClaw as a service with messaging access and persistent storage.

Use neither directly and use RunAgents when you need a full mission control platform — task management, team collaboration, cost tracking, and visual dashboards on top of your OpenClaw agents.

Who Is ClawdBot For?

Individuals who want an AI assistant they can text from their phone. Set up ClawdBot on a cheap VPS, connect it to WhatsApp or Telegram, and you have a personal AI agent available 24/7.

Small teams that want a shared AI bot in their Slack or Discord. The team can interact with the agent naturally in their existing communication channels.

Businesses that want to deploy customer-facing AI agents. Connect ClawdBot to your support channels and let the OpenClaw agent handle common queries, route complex issues, and maintain conversation history.

Cost Breakdown

ClawdBot itself is free (open source). Here's what you'll actually spend:

| Expense | Monthly Cost | Notes | | --------- | ------------- | ------- | | ClawdBot software | $0 | Open source | | VPS hosting | $5-24/mo | DigitalOcean, Hetzner, etc. | | AI model API | $5-100+/mo | Depends on usage volume | | Messaging API fees | $0-20/mo | WhatsApp Business API costs, others are free | | Domain + SSL | $0-1/mo | Optional, Let's Encrypt is free | | Total | $10-145/mo | Typical range for small teams |

The AI model API cost is the variable. Light personal use might be $5/month. A customer-facing bot handling hundreds of conversations could be $100+.

Getting Started: 5-Minute Setup

1. Get a VPS — spin up a $6/mo DigitalOcean droplet (Ubuntu 24.04, 2GB RAM)

2. SSH in — ssh root@your-droplet-ip

3. Install Docker — curl -fsSL https://get.docker.com | sh

4. Clone ClawdBot — git clone https://github.com/clawdbot/clawdbot.git && cd clawdbot

5. Configure — cp .env.example .env && nano .env (add your API key and integration tokens)

6. Launch — docker compose up -d

7. Access the web UI — visit http://your-droplet-ip:3000

The setup wizard walks you through connecting messaging platforms after the initial launch.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is ClawdBot free?

The software is free and open source. You pay for hosting (VPS at $5-24/month), AI model API usage ($5-100+/month depending on how much you use it), and optionally for managed hosting if you don't want to self-host.

What's the difference between ClawdBot and OpenClaw?

OpenClaw is the core AI agent — a CLI tool that runs in your terminal. ClawdBot wraps OpenClaw with a web UI, messaging integrations (WhatsApp, Telegram, Discord, Slack), persistent storage, and a setup wizard. Think of ClawdBot as the deployment layer and OpenClaw as the brain.

What happened to MoltBot?

MoltBot was the original project that ClawdBot evolved from. It had its own agent logic, but when OpenClaw became the dominant framework, the project was rebuilt on top of OpenClaw and renamed to ClawdBot. If you see MoltBot references, they're talking about the same community and project.

What are the system requirements for ClawdBot?

A VPS with 2GB RAM, 1 vCPU, and 20GB storage is the minimum. Docker and Docker Compose are required. For higher traffic, 4GB RAM is recommended. No GPU needed — the AI runs in the cloud.

Can I use ClawdBot with models other than Claude?

Yes. Since ClawdBot uses OpenClaw under the hood, it supports any model provider that OpenClaw supports — Anthropic (Claude), OpenAI (GPT), Google (Gemini), and API-compatible local models. Configure the model in your .env file.

Who created ClawdBot?

ClawdBot is a community project, not made by Anthropic. It started as MoltBot, built by independent developers who wanted to make OpenClaw more accessible. The project has grown into a community-maintained open source tool with contributors worldwide.

Want ClawdBot capabilities with a real team UI? RunAgents gives you managed OpenClaw hosting with task management, team collaboration, and agent debugging built in. Get started free

Related Guides

• What Is OpenClaw? -- The underlying framework

• ClawdBot vs OpenClaw -- Key differences explained

• ClawdBot Complete 2026 Guide -- Full feature overview