Install OpenClaw, run your first chat, and see your AI assistant come to life — all in under 15 minutes.

0 of 10 modules complete0%

5 min read

What you will learn

Understand what OpenClaw is and what it does
Install OpenClaw on your machine
Complete the onboarding wizard
Send your first message and get a real response

Why this matters

In under 15 minutes, you will have your own private AI assistant running on your machine. It is not a cloud service someone else controls. It is yours.

OpenClaw is a personal AI assistant that runs on your computer. You install it once, connect it to the apps you already use (WhatsApp, Telegram, Slack), and it handles tasks, answers questions, and runs automations on your behalf.

It is not like ChatGPT or Claude. Those are websites you visit. OpenClaw is software that lives on your machine, keeps your data local, and connects to any AI model you choose (OpenAI, Claude, Ollama for fully local).

Install OpenClaw

You need Node 24 (recommended) or Node 22.16+. Check your version first:

node --version

If you need to install or update Node, visit nodejs.org or use a version manager like nvm or fnm.

Then install OpenClaw globally:

npm install -g openclaw@latest

Verify the installation:

openclaw --version

Run the onboarding wizard

The wizard walks you through initial configuration. It takes about two minutes:

openclaw onboard --install-daemon

Follow the prompts. It will:

Set up your workspace directory
Install the background process (daemon)
Ask which AI model provider you want to use

Which AI model should I pick?

If you are unsure, start with OpenAI (GPT-4o). It is fast, capable, and widely supported. You can switch models at any time without losing data.

Open the dashboard

The OpenClaw dashboard runs in your browser:

openclaw dashboard

This opens http://127.0.0.1:18789/ — you should see the OpenClaw interface with your agent status, connected channels, and configuration options.

Send your first message

Test that everything is working:

openclaw agent --message "Hello! Tell me what you can do."

You should get a response within a few seconds. If you see a reply, your installation is working correctly.

Verify the installation

Run the built-in health check:

openclaw doctor

All checks green? You are ready for Module 1.

Something not working?

Check the troubleshooting guide for common issues, or run openclaw doctor to diagnose the problem.

Need a command reference? The CLI Cheatsheet has every openclaw command with flags and examples.

Finished this module?

Tracks your progress across all 10 modules

Module 0: Quick Setup