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Signal Setup

Connect your AI helper to Signal using OpenClaw's Signal plugin and your own Signal number.

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Signal is an OpenClaw channel, not a BrainRoad feature. You set it up inside your helper’s own interface, and it needs a Signal number you provide — BrainRoad does not supply one, and nothing gets connected unless you do this yourself.

Fair warning up front: Signal is one of the more involved channels to set up. If you just want a quick way to message your helper, Telegram (a free bot token from @BotFather) is much simpler.

How it works

OpenClaw’s Signal support is a plugin that talks to signal-cli, the standard command-line Signal client. The guided setup can install both for you.

The number model matters:

  • If you connect the helper to your personal Signal account, it ignores your own messages (loop protection) — so you cannot text it from that same account.
  • For “I text the helper and it replies,” use a separate Signal number for the helper. This is the recommended setup.

Signal messages stay end-to-end encrypted between your helper’s device session and the people it talks to.

As with other chat channels, Signal replies are sent by the helper runtime directly in the conversation. They do not go through the BrainRoad Inbox review step the way managed email replies do.

What you need

  • A Signal number for the helper (a separate number is recommended), or an existing Signal account you will link as an additional device.
  • Your helper running on OpenClaw (check the Helper page on the dashboard).

How to connect

  1. Open Console from the dashboard (your helper must be running).
  2. Run the guided setup:
openclaw channels add

Select Signal. The wizard installs the Signal plugin if needed, checks for signal-cli (offering to install it when missing), and prompts for the helper’s number.

  1. Link or register the account, whichever fits your setup:

    • Link an existing account (fastest): the setup produces a QR code via signal-cli. On your phone, open Signal, go to Settings → Linked Devices → Link New Device, and scan it.
    • Register a dedicated number: verify a fresh number by SMS, with a captcha step.

  2. Check the connection:

openclaw channels status

OpenClaw’s own Signal documentation covers both paths in full detail — BrainRoad runs the runtime without changing how its channels work.

Controlling who can reach your helper

By default, unknown senders get a one-time pairing code and cannot talk to your helper until you approve them. You can tighten this to a fixed allowlist. Group chats are allowlist-only by default. Keep it narrow.

If the connection drops

Signal linked-device sessions can expire if the linked account’s phone is offline for a long stretch. Run openclaw channels status in the Console to check, and repeat the linking step above to reconnect.