Control your automations from your pocket — free, fast, and no coding required
Here is everything you need to follow this guide:
Both Telegram and the OpenClaw connection are free forever. No trial. No hidden fees.
Telegram is a free messaging app. Creating a bot inside Telegram is free. Connecting that bot to OpenClaw is free. There is no paid version of any of this. It is all free forever.
| Component | Cost | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Telegram App | Free | FREE FOREVER — works on every device |
| Telegram Bot | Free | FREE FOREVER — unlimited bots |
| OpenClaw Telegram Connection | Free | FREE FOREVER — included in all plans |
Bottom line: Everything in this guide is free. You will not be asked for a credit card at any point.
Every chapter follows the same simple framework: WHAT, HOW, and WHEN. First, we explain what the topic is and why it matters. Then, we show you exactly how to do it — step by step. Finally, we tell you when to use it.
By the end of all 8 chapters, you will be able to: download Telegram, create a bot, connect it to OpenClaw, send commands from your phone, and get automatic notifications when important things happen in your business.
David runs a 12-person landscaping company in Tampa, Florida. Every morning, he drove to the office just to check his dashboard. How many new quotes came in overnight? Did the irrigation supplier confirm the delivery? Were any customers waiting on callbacks?
Then he connected OpenClaw to Telegram. Now his phone buzzes with every new quote. He types /leads and sees today's numbers. He types /schedule and gets the crew assignments. All from the cab of his truck before his first cup of coffee.
That is what happens when you connect OpenClaw to Telegram.
Telegram is a free messaging app that works on your phone, your computer, and your tablet. Here is why it is the best way to control your AI automations:
Think of it this way: right now, to check on your business, you open your laptop, log into a dashboard, click around, and find what you need. With Telegram connected to OpenClaw, you pull out your phone and type a command. Done.
Any time you want to check on your business without opening a laptop. Any time you want instant notifications instead of checking dashboards. Any time you want to trigger an automation from your phone while you are out.
Before you can create a bot, you need Telegram on at least one device. This chapter walks you through installing it on every major platform. The whole process takes about two minutes.
Find the blue icon with the white "A" on your home screen. Tap the search tab at the bottom, type Telegram, tap Get, then tap Open.
Tap the search bar at the top, type Telegram, tap Install, then tap Open.
Open the App Store on your Mac, search for Telegram, click Get. Or go to macos.telegram.org and download it directly.
Open your web browser, go to desktop.telegram.org, click Get Telegram for Windows, run the installer.
Enter your phone number, enter the code Telegram sends you, and you are in. No download required.
When you open Telegram for the first time, it asks for your phone number. Enter it. Telegram sends you a code by text message. Type in the code. Pick a name and profile photo if you want. That is it.
Pro Tip: Install Telegram on both your phone and your computer. Your messages sync across all devices automatically. Many enterprise IT departments already approve Telegram for business use.
Priya manages a 40-person customer support team at a mid-size e-commerce company. She needed a way for the whole team to get real-time alerts when high-priority tickets came in. She created a Telegram bot in under two minutes using BotFather and connected it to OpenClaw. Now every support rep gets a ping the instant a VIP customer opens a ticket.
BotFather is a special bot inside Telegram. Its only job is to create other bots. Think of it as the bot factory.
Open Telegram. Tap the search bar at the top. Type @BotFather. Tap on the result that has a blue checkmark next to the name. Tap Start at the bottom of the chat.
Type /newbot and send it. BotFather asks for a name. Type a friendly name like My Business Bot or Acme Alerts Bot. Then BotFather asks for a username — this has to end in "bot." For example: mybizbot or acme_alerts_bot.
BotFather sends you a long string of letters, numbers, and colons. It looks like this:
Keep your token safe. Do not post it on social media, share it in a group chat, or email it to someone. If someone gets your token, they can control your bot. If that happens, type /revoke in BotFather to get a new one.
| Do This | Do NOT Do This |
|---|---|
| Copy it to a password manager | Post it on social media |
| Save it in a private note | Share it in a group chat |
| Paste it directly into OpenClaw | Email it to someone |
Quick Win: You now have a bot. It does not do anything yet — it is like a new phone with no apps. In the next chapter, you connect it to OpenClaw and bring it to life.
Now you connect your new bot to OpenClaw. This is where the magic starts. Once connected, OpenClaw can send messages through your bot and receive messages from it.
Log in to OpenClaw. Click Connections in the left sidebar. It might also be called "Integrations" or show a plug icon.
Scroll through the list or use the search bar. Click on Telegram. You will see a field that says "Bot Token" or "API Token." Click inside the field, paste your token (Ctrl+V on Windows, Cmd+V on Mac), and click Connect.
If you see a green checkmark, you are done. If you see a red X or error message, double-check that you copied the entire token with no extra spaces.
Pro Tip: If the token does not work, go back to BotFather, type /mybots, select your bot, tap API Token, and copy it fresh.
Time to see it work. You are going to create a simple automation that makes your bot respond when you send it a message. This takes about two minutes.
Open Telegram. Tap the search bar. Type the username you chose in Chapter 3 (like @mybizbot). Tap on your bot. Tap Start.
Go back to your OpenClaw dashboard. Click Create New Flow. For the trigger, choose Telegram — New Message Received. For the action, choose Telegram — Send Message. In the message field, type:
Set "Send to" to the same chat the message came from. Click Test or Publish.
Go back to Telegram. Open the chat with your bot. Type anything — "hello," "test," or "are you there?" Hit send.
Quick Win: You just sent a message to your bot. Telegram told OpenClaw. OpenClaw ran your automation. OpenClaw told your bot to reply. All of that happened in about one second.
Action Step: Right now, open Telegram and send a test message to your bot. See the reply? Your automation is live.
Marcus runs a solo consulting practice. He built five commands in one afternoon. /leads tells him how many new inquiries came in. /invoice creates and sends an invoice. /todo adds an item to his task list. He runs his entire business from Telegram while sitting in coffee shops.
Now that your bot is working, let us make it useful. Each command starts with a slash (/) so your bot knows it is a command.
| Command | What It Does | How to Build It |
|---|---|---|
/report | Sends your daily sales or traffic numbers | Trigger: message contains "/report." Action: Pull data from your spreadsheet, format it, send via Telegram. |
/post | Publishes a social media post | Trigger: message starts with "/post." Action: Take the text after "/post" and send it to your social media tool. |
/leads | Shows how many new leads came in today | Trigger: message contains "/leads." Action: Count today's new contacts in your CRM, send the number. |
/invoice | Creates and sends an invoice | Trigger: message starts with "/invoice." Action: Parse client name and amount, create invoice in your billing tool. |
/status | Checks if all your automations are running | Trigger: message contains "/status." Action: Check active flows, report running vs. paused. |
/remind | Sets a reminder for later | Trigger: message starts with "/remind." Action: Parse time and message, schedule a delayed Telegram message. |
/weather | Sends the current weather for your city | Trigger: message contains "/weather." Action: Call a free weather API, format, send. |
/todo | Adds an item to your to-do list | Trigger: message starts with "/todo." Action: Add text as a row in your spreadsheet. |
/backup | Backs up your important data | Trigger: message contains "/backup." Action: Export key data to a spreadsheet or cloud drive. |
/help | Lists all available commands | Trigger: message contains "/help." Action: Send a formatted list of all your commands. |
Start with /help. Build that one first. It takes two minutes and gives you a reference card you can check anytime. Then pick the one that saves you the most time and build that next.
Even one command that saves you five minutes a day adds up to over 30 hours a year. You do not need to build all ten today. Start with one. Add more as you need them.
The Johnson & Davis law firm has 85 employees across three offices. Their operations manager set up Telegram notifications through OpenClaw. Every new client intake form triggers a ping. Every invoice that gets paid triggers a confirmation. Every system error triggers an alert to the IT department. Nobody checks dashboards anymore — the important stuff comes to them.
Commands are great when you want to check on something. But notifications are even better — they come to you. No typing required.
When: Someone fills out your contact form, signs up for your email list, or sends an inquiry.
How to build it: Trigger: New row added to your CRM or spreadsheet. Action: Format the details and send via Telegram.
When: A customer pays you.
How to build it: Trigger: New payment in Stripe, PayPal, or your payment tool. Action: Format and send via Telegram.
When: One of your automations fails.
How to build it: Trigger: Flow execution fails in OpenClaw. Action: Send error details via Telegram.
When: Every evening at 6 PM (or whatever time you choose).
How to build it: Trigger: Schedule (cron job) at 6 PM daily. Action: Pull numbers from your tools, format into one message, send via Telegram.
When: A product is running low.
How to build it: Trigger: Inventory count drops below a number you set. Action: Send alert via Telegram.
The power of notifications is that you never miss anything. You do not have to remember to check dashboards. Your bot watches everything and taps you on the shoulder when something needs your attention.
Things do not always work perfectly the first time. This chapter covers the six most common problems and exactly how to fix each one. Bookmark this section and come back whenever something feels off.
What you see: You send a message to your bot in Telegram and nothing happens.
Fix it: (1) Check that your automation in OpenClaw is published, not just saved as a draft. (2) Make sure the Telegram connection still shows a green checkmark. (3) Make sure you started the bot in Telegram (open the chat and tap "Start"). (4) Check OpenClaw's run history — if the automation ran but the response failed, the problem is in the action step, not the trigger.
What you see: OpenClaw shows "Invalid token" or "Unauthorized" when you try to connect.
Fix it: Go back to BotFather, type /mybots, select your bot, tap API Token, copy it fresh. Delete the old token in OpenClaw and paste the new one. If you still get an error, type /revoke in BotFather for a brand-new token.
What you see: Your bot sends a message but it is blank or says "undefined."
Fix it: Open the automation in OpenClaw. Check the message template — you probably have a variable that is not getting filled in. Look at the previous step's output. Test the previous step by itself first.
What you see: Notifications arrive minutes or hours late instead of instantly.
Fix it: (1) Check if your automation uses a "delay" or "wait" step and remove it. (2) Switch from "polling" mode to "webhook" mode if available. (3) Check your phone's battery settings — make sure Telegram is allowed to run in the background.
What you see: Your bot sends the same message two or three times.
Fix it: (1) Check if you have multiple automations with the same trigger. (2) Check if your trigger fires more than once. (3) Add a filter step that checks "only run if this has not been processed before" using a unique ID.
What you see: OpenClaw says "Chat not found" or "Bad Request: chat not found."
Fix it: (1) Send a message to your bot first — the bot cannot message you until you message it. (2) If sending to a group, make sure the bot is added and has permission to read messages. (3) Check the Chat ID by sending a message and checking the trigger output in OpenClaw.
Bookmark this section. Come back every time you want to add a new command to your bot.
| # | Command | What It Does | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | /report | Sends daily sales or traffic numbers | Individuals, small business |
| 2 | /post | Publishes a social media post from your phone | Small business, medium business |
| 3 | /leads | Shows today's new lead count | Small business, enterprise sales teams |
| 4 | /invoice | Creates and sends an invoice | Individuals, small business |
| 5 | /status | Checks if all automations are running | Medium business, enterprise departments |
| 6 | /remind | Sets a reminder for later | Individuals |
| 7 | /weather | Current weather for your city | Individuals, field crews |
| 8 | /todo | Adds an item to your to-do list | Individuals, small business |
| 9 | /backup | Backs up your important data | Medium business, enterprise departments |
| 10 | /help | Lists all available commands | Everyone |
Your Telegram bot is connected. You can send commands from your phone, get notifications when things happen, and control your automations from anywhere. Here is what to do now:
Every command you add saves you time. Every notification keeps you informed without checking a dashboard. Your AI is now in your pocket.
Our recommendation: When connecting an AI model to OpenClaw, we recommend Claude by Anthropic. It follows instructions precisely, handles structured data well, and takes your privacy seriously. You're welcome to use any AI tool — ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity all work great. But if you want our honest pick, try Claude.
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