CoderClaw Overview

CoderClaw Overview

CoderClaw is a self-hosted, open-source AI coding assistant that connects your favorite messaging apps to powerful AI agents. Run it on your own infrastructure — no cloud lock-in, no data leaving your control.

TL;DR

CoderClaw connects messaging apps (WhatsApp, Telegram, Discord, Slack, and more) to AI coding agents with a secure, extensible gateway.

• Personal use → spin up with a single command, message your AI from anywhere
• Team use → add RBAC, distributed execution, and audit logs as you grow

What is CoderClaw?

CoderClaw is a self-hosted multi-channel AI gateway that lets you interact with AI coding agents through the chat apps you already use.

Core Features:

• Multi-channel messaging (WhatsApp, Telegram, Discord, Slack, Signal, iMessage)
• WebSocket control plane for clients, nodes, and a web control UI
• Plugin system for extensibility
• Mobile nodes (iOS/Android)
• Canvas and voice features
• Tool system with skills support

Best For:

• Personal AI assistant accessible from any device
• Small teams in a trusted environment
• Local or distributed execution
• Projects requiring full data sovereignty

Enterprise Features

CoderClaw includes enterprise-grade capabilities for teams that need more:

Additional Capabilities:

• 🔄 Transport Abstraction Layer - Execute tasks locally or remotely
• 📊 Distributed Task Lifecycle - Formal state machine with persistence
• 🔐 Enhanced Security - RBAC, device trust, comprehensive audit logs
• 🎯 Team Collaboration - Multi-session isolation, shared registries
• 🏢 Enterprise Ready - CI/CD integration, deterministic execution

Best For:

• Development teams (5+ people)
• Remote or distributed execution
• Advanced security requirements (RBAC, granular permissions)
• CI/CD automation
• Enterprise compliance and audit trails

Feature Summary

Feature	Personal	Enterprise
Core Gateway
Multi-channel messaging	✅	✅
WebSocket control plane	✅	✅
Plugin system	✅	✅
Mobile nodes	✅	✅
Canvas & voice	✅	✅
Execution
Local task execution	✅	✅
Remote task execution	❌	✅
Transport abstraction	❌	✅
Distributed runtime	❌	✅
Task Management
Basic task execution	✅	✅
Task lifecycle management	❌	✅
Task persistence	❌	✅
Task resumability	❌	✅
Audit trail	❌	✅
Security
Allowlists	✅	✅
Device pairing	✅	✅
Token authentication	✅	✅
RBAC	❌	✅
Device trust levels	❌	✅
Comprehensive audit logs	❌	✅
Multi-provider auth (OIDC, GitHub, Google)	❌	✅
Granular permissions	❌	✅
Collaboration
Single-user sessions	✅	✅
Multi-session isolation	❌	✅
Shared agent registries	❌	✅
Team policy enforcement	❌	✅
CI/CD integration	Basic	✅ Advanced
Developer Experience
CLI tools	✅	✅
Web Control UI	✅	✅
macOS/iOS/Android apps	✅	✅
Project knowledge engine	❌	✅
Multi-agent workflows	Basic	✅ Advanced

Architecture

CoderClaw Gateway

┌─────────────────────────────────────┐
│      Multi-Channel Gateway          │
│  (WhatsApp, Telegram, Discord...)   │
└─────────────┬───────────────────────┘
              │
              ▼
┌─────────────────────────────────────┐
│       WebSocket Control Plane       │
│     (Clients, Nodes, Control UI)    │
└─────────────┬───────────────────────┘
              │
              ▼
┌─────────────────────────────────────┐
│         Pi Agent Runtime            │
│       (Local execution only)        │
└─────────────────────────────────────┘

CoderClaw with Enterprise Runtime

┌─────────────────────────────────────┐
│      Multi-Channel Gateway          │
│  (WhatsApp, Telegram, Discord...)   │
└─────────────┬───────────────────────┘
              │
              ▼
┌─────────────────────────────────────┐
│       WebSocket Control Plane       │
│     (Clients, Nodes, Control UI)    │
└─────────────┬───────────────────────┘
              │
              ▼
┌─────────────────────────────────────┐
│     CoderClaw Runtime Layer         │
│  ┌───────────────────────────────┐  │
│  │  Transport Abstraction Layer  │  │
│  └───────────────────────────────┘  │
│  ┌───────────────────────────────┐  │
│  │ Distributed Task Engine       │  │
│  └───────────────────────────────┘  │
│  ┌───────────────────────────────┐  │
│  │  Security Service (RBAC)      │  │
│  └───────────────────────────────┘  │
└─────────────┬───────────────────────┘
              │
              ▼
┌─────────────────────────────────────┐
│   Pi Agent Runtime + Task Executor  │
│   (Local or Remote execution)       │
└─────────────────────────────────────┘

Use Cases

Personal and Small Team Use

✅ Personal AI assistant for messaging apps ✅ Small trusted team (2-5 people) ✅ Local execution is sufficient ✅ Basic allowlist security is enough ✅ No need for audit trails ✅ Simple deployment model

Example: “I want an AI assistant I can message on WhatsApp from my phone that runs on my Mac at home.”

Team and Enterprise Use

✅ Development team (5+ people) ✅ Need remote or distributed execution ✅ Require RBAC and granular permissions ✅ Need comprehensive audit logs ✅ CI/CD automation requirements ✅ Enterprise compliance needs ✅ Multi-tenant deployments

Example: “Our team needs an AI assistant that runs on a shared server, with different permission levels for developers, reviewers, and CI pipelines, plus full audit logs for compliance.”

Pricing and Licensing

CoderClaw is MIT licensed and free to use.

• Source: github.com/SeanHogg/coderClaw

Getting Started

npm install -g coderclaw@latest
coderclaw onboard --install-daemon
coderclaw gateway --port 18789

Documentation: docs.coderclaw.ai

Enabling Enterprise Features

Enterprise features are backward compatible — your existing setup continues to work. Enable them as needed:

# Your existing setup works unchanged
coderclaw gateway --port 18789

# Opt-in to extended features
mkdir -p ~/.coderclaw/.coderClaw
# Add runtime.yaml and security.yaml as needed

Contributing

CoderClaw welcomes contributions:

• Core gateway features, channels, tools
• Enterprise runtime, security, and distributed features

Community

Join Discord

FAQ

Q: Can I run CoderClaw on the same machine as other services?

A: Yes, just ensure the gateway port (18789) is not in use by another process.

Q: Is CoderClaw expensive to run?

A: No. Enterprise features add minimal overhead. API costs depend on which AI models you configure.

Q: Can I switch configurations easily?

A: Yes. Backup your ~/.coderclaw directory to preserve your configuration.

Q: Which setup should I start with?

A: If you’re just exploring — start simple. If you know you need team features — enable enterprise capabilities from the start.

Summary

CoderClaw = Self-hosted, open-source AI coding assistant + multi-channel messaging gateway.

Choose your setup based on requirements:

• Solo or small team + local only — start with the default configuration
• Team or enterprise + distributed + security — enable enterprise runtime features

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This guide is maintained by the CoderClaw project. For questions, see docs.coderclaw.ai.