OpenClaw GitHub Repo: Clone, Install & Build Your First Agent

What is the OpenClaw GitHub Repository?

The OpenClaw GitHub repository is the official open-source home of the OpenClaw AI agent framework. It contains the complete source code for the CLI, the gateway server, the skills system, agent configuration templates, and documentation. Everything you need to build, run, and deploy AI agents with OpenClaw lives in this single repository.

The repository is publicly accessible, which means anyone can clone it, inspect the code, submit issues, and contribute pull requests. For most users, interacting with the repo directly is not required since you can install OpenClaw via npm. But if you want to understand how the framework works under the hood, customize it for your needs, or contribute back to the project, the GitHub repository is where you start.

The repo also serves as the central hub for community discussion. The Issues tab is where bugs are reported and features are requested. Pull requests are where contributions are reviewed and merged. And the release history gives you a clear timeline of every version, feature, and fix.

Repository Structure

The OpenClaw codebase is organized into a clear directory structure. Understanding this layout helps you navigate the code, find what you need, and know where to make changes if you are contributing.

openclaw/
├── agents/          # Default agent templates and examples
│   ├── researcher/  # Research agent template
│   ├── writer/      # Content writer template
│   └── ...
├── gateway/         # Gateway server (HTTP + WebSocket)
│   ├── server.js    # Main gateway entry point
│   ├── routes/      # API route handlers
│   └── channels/    # Telegram, Slack, Discord, Email
├── skills/          # Built-in skills (browser, scraper, etc.)
│   ├── browser/     # Web browsing skill
│   ├── scraper/     # Content scraping skill
│   ├── file/        # File management skill
│   └── ...
├── cli/             # Command-line interface
│   ├── commands/    # CLI command definitions
│   └── utils/       # CLI helper utilities
├── docs/            # Documentation and guides
├── package.json     # Dependencies and scripts
└── README.md        # Project overview and quickstart

agents/

The agents directory contains default agent templates that ship with OpenClaw. Each subdirectory is a complete agent workspace with a SOUL.md file, and in some cases additional configuration files. These templates serve as starting points for your own agents. You can copy a template, modify the SOUL.md to match your use case, and register it with the CLI.

gateway/

The gateway is the runtime engine of OpenClaw. It is a Node.js server that handles incoming messages, routes them to the correct agent, manages sessions, and communicates with LLM providers. The channels subdirectory contains the integrations for Telegram, Slack, Discord, and Email. When you run openclaw gateway start, this is the code that executes.

skills/

Skills are plug-and-play capabilities you can give your agents. The skills directory contains every built-in skill, each in its own subdirectory with its implementation and configuration. When you add browser: Search the web to your SOUL.md, the gateway loads the corresponding skill from this directory.

cli/

The CLI directory contains the command-line interface you interact with when you run openclaw in your terminal. Each command (agents add, gateway start, agent --message, etc.) is defined in the commands subdirectory. If you want to understand how a CLI command works or propose a new one, this is where to look.

How to Clone and Install from GitHub

There are two ways to get OpenClaw on your machine: installing the published package via npm, or cloning the repository directly from GitHub. Here is how to do both.

Option 1: Install via npm (recommended for most users)

If you just want to use OpenClaw to build and run agents, install it globally with npm. This is the fastest path to a working setup.

# Install globally
npm install -g openclaw

# Verify installation
openclaw --version

# Start building your first agent
mkdir my-agent && cd my-agent
openclaw init

Option 2: Clone from GitHub (for contributors and developers)

If you want to inspect the source code, contribute to the project, or run the development version, clone the repository directly.

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw.git
cd openclaw

# Install dependencies
npm install

# Link the CLI globally for development
npm link

# Verify it works
openclaw --version

# Run the test suite
npm test

After cloning, you have the full source code locally. You can explore every directory, make changes, run the test suite, and submit pull requests. The npm link command makes your local development version available as the global openclaw command, so you can test your changes immediately.

Key Files You Should Know

The OpenClaw framework is built around a few critical files. Whether you are using the framework or contributing to it, understanding these files is essential.

# Scheduled Tasks

## Morning Report
- Schedule: Every day at 9:00 AM
- Agent: @researcher
- Message: Run the daily SEO performance report

## Weekly Summary
- Schedule: Every Monday at 10:00 AM
- Agent: @writer
- Message: Compile the weekly content performance summary

Contributing to OpenClaw

OpenClaw is an open-source project that welcomes contributions from the community. Whether you want to fix a bug, add a feature, improve documentation, or create a new skill, here is how to contribute.

Step 1: Fork and clone

Fork the OpenClaw repository to your GitHub account, then clone your fork locally. This gives you a personal copy where you can make changes without affecting the main repository.

# Fork on GitHub first, then clone your fork
git clone https://github.com/YOUR_USERNAME/openclaw.git
cd openclaw
npm install

# Add upstream remote to stay in sync
git remote add upstream https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw.git

# Create a feature branch
git checkout -b feature/my-new-skill

Step 2: Make your changes

Follow the existing code style and patterns. If you are adding a new skill, look at how existing skills are structured in the skills directory. If you are fixing a bug, include a test that reproduces the issue. Run the test suite with npm test to make sure your changes do not break anything.

Step 3: Submit a pull request

Push your branch to your fork and open a pull request against the main OpenClaw repository. Write a clear description of what your PR does, why it is needed, and how to test it. The maintainers will review your code and provide feedback. Most PRs are reviewed within a few days.

# Stage and commit your changes
git add .
git commit -m "Add new calendar skill for scheduling"

# Push to your fork
git push origin feature/my-new-skill

# Open a pull request on GitHub
# Go to https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw/pulls
# Click "New pull request" and select your branch

Contributions do not have to be code. Documentation improvements, bug reports with clear reproduction steps, and well-described feature requests are all valuable contributions to the project.

Common GitHub Issues and Solutions

When working with the OpenClaw GitHub repository, you may run into common issues. Here are the most frequent problems and their solutions.

Skip the Setup -- Use CrewClaw

Cloning the repository, navigating the codebase, writing SOUL.md files from scratch, and configuring the gateway is the manual path. It works, but it takes time and assumes familiarity with the terminal, Git, and Node.js.

CrewClaw generates everything for you. Pick a role from the library, configure your agent with a visual interface, and download a complete, ready-to-deploy agent package. The SOUL.md, directory structure, skills configuration, and deployment instructions are all included. No cloning, no dependency debugging, no guesswork.

It costs $9 one-time per agent. You get a production-ready OpenClaw agent package in under 5 minutes instead of spending 30 minutes reading through the repository and writing configuration files from scratch.

Related Guides

Frequently Asked Questions