25 Real OpenClaw Automations That Are Actually Working: From Inbox Zero to AI Chief of Staff

We collected the most impressive OpenClaw setups from real users—with specific configurations, results, and the workflows that save hours weekly. Plus security tips so you don't become a cautionary tale.

The OpenClaw Phenomenon

OpenClaw (formerly Clawdbot, then Moltbot) has been called 'an LLM with hands'—an AI agent that doesn't just chat but actually does things on your behalf.

With 135K+ GitHub stars and coverage from Fortune, CNBC, and IBM Research, it's the hottest AI tool of 2026.

But what are people actually doing with it? We collected 25 real automations from verified users.

---

Email & Communication Automations

1. Inbox Zero Overnight

Source: Hostinger Tutorial
'OpenClaw cleared nearly 6,000 emails from my inbox on the first day.'
How it works: - Scans subject lines, sender patterns, message content - Categorizes by urgency and action needed - Unsubscribes from spam automatically - Drafts replies for review - Archives processed emails Configuration: ``` Give read access to email Give write access to drafts folder only Set rule: 'Categorize emails, unsubscribe from marketing, draft replies for anything requiring response' ```

---

2. Smart Email Triage

Source: OpenClaw Email Tutorial Categories created automatically: - 🔴 Urgent - needs response today - 🟡 Important - needs response this week - 🟢 FYI - no response needed - 🗑️ Delete - spam/marketing

---

3. The Dental Appointment Magic

Source: 24 Hours with OpenClaw
'My wife texted about a dental appointment. OpenClaw saw it via iMessage integration, created a calendar event with 30-minute driving buffers, invited her, and texted her "Got it! 🦷"—all without being asked.'

This demonstrates OpenClaw's proactive capabilities when given appropriate permissions.

---

4. Meeting Rescheduling Agent

Source: Turing College

When someone wants to reschedule: 1. OpenClaw monitors inbox for reschedule requests 2. Checks your calendar availability 3. Updates the event 4. Drafts confirmation email 5. Sends (or queues for approval)

No human involvement required.

---

Calendar & Scheduling

5. The 2-Minute Morning Brief

Source: Hostinger

Every morning at 7 AM, OpenClaw sends you: - Today's weather - First 3 calendar events - Top headlines in your interests - Any urgent emails from overnight

Setup: Use OpenClaw's built-in scheduler or cron job.

---

6. Family Trip Calendar

Source: Master OpenClaw Tutorial
'I texted my bot to schedule a family trip. It created events, sent calendar invites to family members, and added packing reminders—way easier than navigating Google Calendar.'

---

7. Smart Scheduling with Buffers

Source: User reports

OpenClaw automatically adds: - Travel time between locations - Buffer time after intense meetings - Lunch blocks if missing - Focus time for deep work

---

File & Document Management

8. Client Onboarding Automation

Source: Hostinger

Trigger: Tell OpenClaw a new client's name and email

OpenClaw then: 1. Creates folders in Google Drive/Dropbox 2. Copies template documents 3. Sends welcome email 4. Creates calendar events for milestones 5. Adds tasks to your project manager

---

9. Cross-Platform File Sync

Source: Contabo Blog

OpenClaw can: - Scan local drives against cloud backups - Identify missing files - Handle transfers with rate limiting - Resume after interruptions - Report discrepancies

---

10. Research Thread Manager

Source: IBM Research
'Research threads that run for days, collecting sources, summarizing papers, and compiling reports while I sleep.'

---

Productivity & Life Management

11. Weekly Shipped Recap

Source: IBM

Every Friday, OpenClaw compiles: - Git commits and PRs merged - Tasks completed - Emails sent - Meetings attended - Progress toward goals

Result: Automated weekly standup, performance review material.

---

12. Habit Tracker

Source: Various user reports

OpenClaw monitors your behavior and: - Tracks exercise (via fitness API) - Logs meals (via photo recognition) - Monitors sleep patterns - Sends encouragement or warnings - Compiles weekly health reports

---

13. Travel Updates & Planning

Source: AIMultiple Research Scheduled tasks include: - Flight status monitoring - Weather updates for destination - Restaurant reservations - Activity bookings - Packing list reminders

---

14. Expense Reporting

Source: AIMultiple
'Snap a photo of a receipt, send it to OpenClaw. It extracts vendor, date, amount, category, and logs it to a spreadsheet.'

End of month: Auto-generates expense report.

---

15. Content Production Pipeline

Source: Various tutorials

1. Research topic (web search) 2. Create outline 3. Draft content 4. Generate images 5. Format for publication 6. Schedule posts

---

Developer & Technical

16. GitHub Issue Triage

Source: Awesome OpenClaw Skills

OpenClaw monitors repos and: - Labels new issues automatically - Assigns based on content - Drafts initial responses - Escalates critical bugs

---

17. CI/CD Monitoring

Source: Developer community

- Watches build pipelines - Alerts on failures - Suggests fixes based on error logs - Can trigger rebuilds

---

18. Code Review Preparation

Source: User reports

Before PRs: - Runs linting - Checks test coverage - Summarizes changes - Identifies potential issues - Drafts review comments

---

Smart Home & IoT

19. Weather-Based Automation

Source: CNBC
'Adjusting the boiler based on weather forecasts'

OpenClaw checks forecast → adjusts thermostat → optimizes energy use.

---

20. Device Control via Messaging

Source: User reports

Text OpenClaw: - 'Turn off all lights' - 'Set thermostat to 68' - 'Lock the front door' - 'Start the robot vacuum'

---

Creative & Unique

21. Custom Meditation Generation

Source: HN user
'I had OpenClaw write custom meditations, then auto-generate TTS combined with ambient audio. Personalized meditation that actually rips.'

---

22. Restaurant Reservation Bot

Source: Fortune
'A few days later they're posting screenshots of it booking their restaurant reservations'

---

23. School WhatsApp Monitor

Source: User reports

Parent setup: - Monitors school WhatsApp group - Runs face recognition on photos - Sends daily digest when their child appears - Filters noise, highlights important announcements

---

24. Trading Signal Monitor

Source: AIMultiple

- Monitors social sentiment - Tracks price movements - Calculates position sizes - Alerts on opportunities - (Some users: auto-executes trades)

---

25. The AI Chief of Staff

Source: Substack Review
'24 Hours with OpenClaw: The AI Setup That Made Me Feel Like I Finally Have a Chief of Staff'

Combining multiple automations: - Morning brief - Email triage - Calendar management - Task prioritization - End-of-day summary

---

Security Best Practices

Start Read-Only

Source: Global Nerdy
'Start by giving OpenClaw only read-only automation. Let it summarize emails or provide briefings before giving it write access.'

Principle of Least Privilege

Example good setup: - ✅ Read calendar - ✅ Edit select Google Docs - ❌ Full Google Drive access - ❌ Send emails without approval

Use Secondary Accounts

Source: AIMultiple
'At its current maturity, OpenClaw is best suited for secondary machines, servers, or sandboxed environments, accounts created specifically for automation purposes.'

Creator's Warning

Peter Steinberger (Creator):
'It's a free, open source hobby project that requires careful configuration to be secure. It's not meant for non-technical users.'

---

Who Should Use OpenClaw

Good Fit

- Technical users comfortable with configuration - Those with clear automation needs - People willing to start slowly and expand - Users with secondary accounts for testing

Not Ready For

- Non-technical users - Critical systems without backup plans - Anyone unwilling to review AI actions - Highly sensitive data environments

---

Getting Started Safely

1. Install on secondary machine or VM 2. Create dedicated accounts for automation 3. Start with read-only access 4. Review all actions for first 2 weeks 5. Gradually expand permissions 6. Use official skills only (check VirusTotal) 7. Monitor logs regularly

---

Resources

- Main Repo: github.com/openclaw/openclaw - Skills Directory: github.com/openclaw/clawhub - Security Guide: AIMultiple Research - Tutorial: Global Nerdy - User Experiences: Hacker News Discussion

---

Related Reading

- The 7 AI Agents That Actually Save You Time in 2026 - OpenClaw Is the Hottest AI Tool of 2026. Here Are the Best Ways People Are Actually Using It. - OpenClaw Is the AI Assistant That Actually Does Things - I Let Claude Code Run My Startup for a Week. Here's What Happened. - How to Build an AI Agent That Actually Works (2026 Guide)