Why I Built an AI That Lives in My Terminal

Personal AI agents are changing how we work. Here is one approach that actually does things.

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I’ve been thinking about this question a lot: What if your AI assistant actually did things?

Not just answered questions. Not just wrote code you had to copy-paste. Actually did things. Sent emails. Ran tests. Booked flights. Filed insurance claims while you slept.

That’s what ClawdBot is. And no, I’m not just saying that because it’s the subject of this blog.

The Problem with Today’s AI Assistants

Here’s the thing about ChatGPT, Claude, and the rest: they’re incredible conversationalists. Ask them anything, and they’ll give you an answer. Sometimes those answers are life-changing.

But at the end of the day, they’re really fancy search engines with a grasp of language. They can’t:

  • Send that email you drafted
  • Run the tests you asked about
  • Add items to your calendar
  • Check if your flight prices dropped
  • Create a pull request

You have to do all of that yourself. The AI gives you the what, and you’re still stuck doing the how.

Enter ClawdBot

ClawdBot is different. It’s an AI that lives on your machine, has access to your files, and can actually do things in the real world.

Here’s what it can do:

Real Work Execution

  • Write and edit files directly
  • Run shell commands
  • Create git commits and pull requests
  • Deploy websites

Life Automation

  • Send emails and messages
  • Manage calendars
  • Track expenses and reimbursements
  • Monitor prices and alerts

Proactive Behavior

  • Run background tasks on schedules
  • Watch for webhooks and triggers
  • Send you morning briefings
  • Monitor systems while you sleep

Multi-Channel Communication

  • Works through Telegram, Discord, WhatsApp
  • Even iMessage if you’re on macOS
  • Voice commands available

Why Local Matters

Most AI assistants run in the cloud. Your data goes to someone else’s servers. Your conversations are training data.

ClawdBot runs locally. Your data stays on your machine. That matters for:

  • Privacy: Medical discussions, financial info, work secrets never leave your device
  • Control: You decide what it can access, when, and how
  • Cost: Use your own API keys, no subscription markup
  • Persistence: It remembers things across sessions, weeks, months

A Day in the Life

Here’s what using ClawdBot actually looks like:

Morning:

“Hey, give me my briefing” → It checks your calendar, reads emails, grabs weather, summarizes everything in 2 paragraphs

Work:

“Review that PR and run tests” → It clones the repo, reads the code, runs tests, leaves comments

Personal:

“Find cheap flights to Tokyo for next month” → It monitors prices and pings you when they drop

Evening:

“Generate that video idea and save it” → It creates a Remotion project, renders it, puts it in your projects folder

The Skills System

One of the coolest things is the Skills system. Anyone can write a skill in TypeScript/JavaScript, and suddenly ClawdBot has new capabilities.

Community skills include:

  • Gmail and Google Calendar integration
  • GitHub automation
  • Spotify control
  • Smart home (Philips Hue, etc.)
  • Image and video generation
  • Voice transcription
  • And more added every week

The Lobster Thing

Yes, ClawdBot’s branding is a lobster. 🦞

The creator named his AI assistant “Clawd” - a space lobster character. When the project went open-source, it became ClawdBot. The lobster stuck because honestly, it’s memorable and a little absurd. AI assistants take themselves so seriously. ClawdBot is here to be genuinely useful while having personality.

Is This for Everyone?

Honestly? Not yet.

ClawdBot requires some technical comfort. You need to:

  • Install Node.js and run terminal commands
  • Configure API keys (Anthropic, OpenAI, etc.)
  • Understand basic security concepts

But if you’re a developer, a productivity nerd, or someone who wants to actually own their AI assistant, this is for you.

What’s Coming

The project is just getting started. The roadmap includes:

  • Better local model support (less reliance on API keys)
  • Improved mobile apps
  • More skills and integrations
  • Multi-agent collaboration
  • Even more automation

The vision is simple: an AI that works for you, on your terms, on your machine.

Give It a Try

If any of this resonated, check out the project. The install is a single command. The community is active. And honestly, building your own AI assistant is just… fun.

The future of personal computing isn’t a subscription service. It’s an assistant that lives on your machine, knows your life, and actually gets stuff done.

That’s ClawdBot. That’s what we’re covering here. And we’re just getting started.