What Is Moltbot?
An open-source, local-first personal AI assistant that runs on your own devices, connects to all your chat apps, and actually does things for you.
The Personal AI Assistant You Control
Moltbot is a personal, single-user AI assistant designed to feel local, fast, and always available. Unlike cloud AI tools that run on remote servers, Moltbot runs on your own machine or server.
It connects directly to your chat accounts and acts as your assistant — not a shared SaaS product. The Gateway is just the control plane. The product is the assistant.
"Moltbot isn't just another chatbot — it's a personal operating system for AI."
Core Concepts
Understanding the fundamentals of Moltbot
Local-First Architecture
Moltbot runs on your own hardware (Mac, Linux, Windows via WSL2, Raspberry Pi, or VPS). Your data and credentials never leave your control.
Self-Hosted Gateway
The Gateway is a background service acting as the front door, managing connections to messaging platforms and orchestrating all interactions.
Single-User Design
Designed for personal use, not as a shared chatbot service. One assistant that knows you and works exclusively for you.
Always-On Availability
Runs as a daemon service 24/7, maintaining long-term memory and context. No need to be at your computer to interact.
System Architecture
Moltbot's architecture is centered on a persistent gateway service with four primary components working together.
WhatsApp / Telegram / Slack / Discord / Signal / iMessage / Teams / Matrix
│
▼
┌───────────────────────────────┐
│ Gateway │
│ (control plane) │
│ ws://127.0.0.1:18789 │
└──────────────┬────────────────┘
│
┌───────────────────┼───────────────────┐
│ │ │
▼ ▼ ▼
┌──────────┐ ┌──────────┐ ┌──────────┐
│ Pi Agent │ │ Browser │ │ Canvas │
│ (RPC) │ │ Control │ │ (A2UI) │
└──────────┘ └──────────┘ └──────────┘
│
├─ CLI (moltbot …)
├─ WebChat UI
├─ macOS App
└─ iOS / Android NodesFour Primary Components
1. Gateway
The central control plane running on your machine. Manages WebSocket connections, session management, tool orchestration, security, authentication, and exposes a web-based Control UI.
2. Pi Agent
The AI brain and reasoning engine. Supports Claude, GPT, Gemini, and local models via Ollama/LM Studio. Handles thinking, tools, memory, and routing with RPC communication.
3. Skills
Modular capabilities that extend the agent's reach. 50+ bundled skills including browser automation, file system access, calendar integration, smart home control, and more.
4. Memory
Persistent storage layer retaining context, preferences, and long-term conversation history. Uses Markdown files (USER.md, MEMORY.md) that grow as you interact.
Multi-Channel Messaging
Moltbot connects to all your existing chat apps through a unified inbox. One conversation view is maintained across platforms, so the assistant remembers context regardless of channel.
via Baileys
Telegram
via grammY
Slack
via Bolt
Discord
via discord.js
iMessage
via imsg CLI
Signal
via signal-cli
Teams
extension
Matrix
extension
Plus Google Chat, BlueBubbles, Zalo, WebChat, and more via extensions.
Moltbot vs. Cloud AI Assistants
| Feature | Moltbot | Cloud AI (ChatGPT, Claude.ai) |
|---|---|---|
| Data Location | Your device / server | Provider's servers |
| Availability | Always-on 24/7 | Requires opening app/website |
| Memory | Persistent across all channels | Limited or session-based |
| Proactive Actions | Can message you first | Reactive only |
| System Access | Full (shell, browser, files) | Sandboxed / limited |
| Chat Platforms | 10+ messaging apps | Single interface |
| Customization | Fully configurable | Limited settings |
| Model Choice | Any provider + local models | Provider's model only |
Key Features
What makes Moltbot powerful
Persistent Memory
Unlike stateless AI, Moltbot remembers everything. Conversations on WhatsApp continue seamlessly on Telegram. The USER.md file grows as you interact.
Proactive Communication
Features a Heartbeat Engine and cron job integration. Moltbot can wake itself up, check data, and message you when thresholds are met.
Voice Wake + Talk Mode
Always-on speech support for macOS, iOS, and Android with ElevenLabs integration. Talk, listen, and get natural voice responses.
Live Canvas
Agent-driven visual workspace with A2UI. See live visual output you control, perfect for code, diagrams, and interactive content.
Browser Automation
Dedicated Chrome/Chromium control with CDP. Snapshots, actions, uploads, and profile management for web automation tasks.
Multi-Agent Routing
Route inbound channels, accounts, and peers to isolated agents with workspaces and per-agent sessions for complex workflows.
Extensible Skills System
Skills extend Moltbot's capabilities, allowing it to interact with external services, automate workflows, and perform specialized tasks. Moltbot comes with 50+ bundled skills that load automatically.
🏠 Smart Home
- Home Assistant
- Philips Hue
- Google Nest
- Nanoleaf
- Alexa / VoiceMonkey
🔍 Search & Research
- Brave Search
- Kagi Search
- Exa AI
- Literature Review
- SEO Audit
⚙️ Productivity
- GitHub
- Notion
- Calendar
- n8n Workflows
Install more skills from ClawdHub:
clawdhub search "what you need"
clawdhub install <skill-name>Technology Stack
Moltbot is built with modern technologies for reliability and extensibility.
Runtime & Core
- Node.js ≥ 22 — Runtime requirement
- TypeScript — Type-safe codebase
- WebSocket — Real-time Gateway communication
- RPC — Agent communication protocol
AI Model Support
- Anthropic Claude — Primary recommended
- OpenAI GPT — Full support
- Google Gemini — Full support
- Ollama / LM Studio — Local models
Channel Libraries
- Baileys — WhatsApp Web
- grammY — Telegram Bot API
- discord.js — Discord Bot
- Bolt — Slack integration
Deployment Options
- npm / pnpm — Global install
- Docker — Containerized deployment
- Nix — Declarative config
- systemd / launchd — Service management
Workspace Structure
Moltbot stores all configuration, memory, and context in a local workspace directory. These files are fully editable and allow you to customize how Moltbot behaves.
~/.clawdbot/
├── AGENTS.md # Available agents
├── BOOTSTRAP.md # Initial system setup
├── HEARTBEAT.md # System health
├── IDENTITY.md # Moltbot's identity
├── SOUL.md # Personality traits
├── TOOLS.md # Available tools
├── USER.md # What it knows about you
├── canvas/ # Working directory
├── memory/ # Persistent memory
└── agents/
└── <agentId>/
└── agent/
└── auth-profiles.json💡 Tip: Edit USER.md to add context about yourself, your projects, and preferences. The memory/ directory stores long-term memories that persist across sessions.
Security Model
Moltbot connects to real messaging surfaces, so security is built in by default.
Local Loopback by Default
Gateway is bound to 127.0.0.1 by default, limiting access to the host machine only.
DM Pairing Required
Unknown senders must be approved before they can interact with your assistant. Explicit opt-in for public messages.
Local Allowlists
Configure exactly who can interact with your assistant through allowFrom settings per channel.
Built-in Diagnostics
Run moltbot doctor to surface risky or misconfigured DM policies and update service entrypoints.
In Summary
Moltbot is fundamentally an orchestration layer rather than a standalone model. It combines:
- ✓A gatekeeper service with a database of context and credentials
- ✓An LLM endpoint of your choice for reasoning
- ✓Integrations (skills) for email, calendars, browsers, smart home, and more
- ✓Multi-channel bridges to all your messaging apps
The result is a personal, agentic AI system that combines powerful language models with tool integration and local execution — a capable, privacy-focused alternative to cloud-dependent assistants.