Telegram Bot Integration with OpenClaw

Control OpenClaw AI from any Telegram client on your phone or desktop. Send tasks, check job status, and receive automated reports directly in chat.

Integration7 min read

Quick Start in 3 Steps

Step 1 — Create your bot: Message @BotFather on Telegram, send /newbot, and save the token.

Step 2 — Configure OpenClaw:

openclaw config set telegram.bot_token "YOUR_TOKEN"
openclaw config set telegram.allowed_users "YOUR_TELEGRAM_ID"

Step 3 — Start and test:

openclaw start --telegram
# Then send to your bot: /run Summarize today's top AI news

Prerequisites

Step 1: Create a Bot via BotFather

  1. Open Telegram and search for @BotFather
  2. Send /newbot and follow prompts to name your bot
  3. Copy the API token that BotFather provides (e.g. 123456789:ABCdef...)
  4. Get your personal chat ID: message @userinfobot to receive your numeric ID
⚠️
Security Note

Always set telegram.allowed_users in your config to restrict bot access to your personal Telegram ID only.

Step 2: Install the Telegram Pack

openclaw install telegram

Step 3: Configure

openclaw config set telegram.bot_token "123456789:ABCdef..."
openclaw config set telegram.allowed_users "YOUR_TELEGRAM_USER_ID"
# config.yaml
integrations:
  telegram:
    bot_token: "${TELEGRAM_BOT_TOKEN}"
    allowed_users:
      - 123456789    # your numeric Telegram ID
    mode: polling    # polling or webhook
    poll_interval: 2 # seconds

Bot Commands

CommandDescription
/run <task>Execute an AI task
/statusCheck current job status
/stopStop the running job
/helpShow available commands
/config provider <name>Switch AI provider

Step 4: Start the Bot

# Start OpenClaw with Telegram integration enabled
openclaw start --telegram

Now send /run Summarize today's top tech news to your bot in Telegram.

Webhook vs Polling

Polling is simpler — OpenClaw regularly asks Telegram for new messages. Works on any network.

Webhook is more efficient — Telegram pushes messages immediately. Requires a public HTTPS endpoint.

integrations:
  telegram:
    mode: webhook
    webhook_url: https://api.your-domain.com/telegram/webhook

Scheduled Tasks and Reports

Set up OpenClaw to send you automated reports via Telegram at a scheduled time:

# config.yaml
integrations:
  telegram:
    bot_token: "${TELEGRAM_BOT_TOKEN}"
    allowed_users:
      - 123456789
    scheduled_reports:
      - cron: "0 9 * * *"       # Daily at 9:00 AM
        task: "Summarize yesterday's news headlines"
      - cron: "0 17 * * 5"     # Every Friday at 5 PM
        task: "Generate a weekly productivity summary"
# Or use the CLI to send a one-off message
openclaw telegram send "Backup complete. 42 files processed."

Common Use Cases

  • Remote monitoring — check server status from your phone: /status
  • AI writing assistant — draft emails or reports on the go: /run Write a reply to this email: [paste]
  • Code review — paste a snippet and ask for a review: /run Review this Python code for bugs
  • Daily briefing — auto-send a morning digest at 8 AM with scheduled tasks
  • Notification system — trigger Telegram alerts from scripts or CI/CD pipelines

Security Best Practices

⚠️
Always restrict access

Without allowed_users, anyone who knows your bot token can send it commands. Always set this to your personal Telegram ID.

  • Store the bot token in an environment variable: TELEGRAM_BOT_TOKEN
  • Never commit the token to version control or config files checked into git
  • Use a separate bot for each environment (dev, staging, production)
  • Rotate the bot token via @BotFather → /revoke if compromised
  • Enable two-factor authentication on your Telegram account

Multi-User Access

Grant access to multiple Telegram users (e.g., a team):

integrations:
  telegram:
    allowed_users:
      - 123456789   # Your personal ID
      - 987654321   # Teammate
    permission_levels:
      123456789: admin    # can run, stop, and configure
      987654321: viewer   # can only check /status

Troubleshooting

ProblemCauseFix
Bot doesn't respondToken invalid or bot not startedVerify token; run openclaw start --telegram
"Unauthorized" errorBot token revokedGenerate new token via @BotFather → /token
Commands ignoredUser ID not in allowed_usersAdd your user ID (get it from @userinfobot)
Webhook not receivingPublic URL unreachable or HTTP-onlyUse polling mode, or ensure HTTPS endpoint is accessible
Slow responseHigh poll_intervalLower poll_interval to 1 second in config

Try It Yourself

Once your Telegram bot is running, test these commands directly from the Telegram app on your phone or desktop.

Example 1: Run a task from Telegram while away from your computer

# In Telegram, message your bot:
/run Summarise yesterday's git commits in my main project

# OpenClaw runs on your server and replies:
# ✅ Done. Yesterday's commits:
# - feat: add dark mode toggle (3 files)
# - fix: correct timeout in API client
# - docs: update README with new config options

Example 2: Schedule a daily briefing via Telegram

# Add to cron (runs on your server, sends result to Telegram)
# crontab -e
0 8 * * 1-5 openclaw run "Generate a brief morning standup: yesterday's work, today's priorities, blockers" \
  --path ~/projects/main/ \
  | openclaw telegram send "🌅 Daily Briefing
$(cat)"

Example 3: Receive alerts from automated scripts

#!/usr/bin/env bash
# deploy.sh — send Telegram notification after deployment
./scripts/deploy.sh

if [ $? -eq 0 ]; then
  openclaw telegram send "✅ Deployment succeeded: v$(cat VERSION) is live"
else
  openclaw telegram send "❌ Deployment FAILED — check logs at /var/log/deploy.log"
fi
Get your Telegram user ID: Message @userinfobot on Telegram — it instantly replies with your numeric user ID. Add it to allowed_users in your OpenClaw config.

What's Next

💡
See Also
← Ollama Integration Discord Bot →