How to Set Up OpenClaw with ElevenLabs Voice - Build Your JARVIS
Complete guide to adding professional AI voice to OpenClaw. Build a JARVIS-like assistant that talks, remembers, and calls you with updates. Step-by-step with phone integration.
How to Set Up OpenClaw (Clawdbot) with ElevenLabs Voice
Build your own JARVIS: A voice AI assistant that talks, remembers, and calls you with updates.
What you'll build:
- Voice AI that sounds human (like Tony Stark's JARVIS)
- Answers phone calls for you
- Calls you with daily briefings and alerts
- Remembers everything
- Controls your computer
- Runs locally (you own it)
Time: 30-45 minutes
Skill level: Beginner-friendly (no coding required)
Ever wanted your own JARVIS from Iron Man? This guide shows you how to build it.
Why Add ElevenLabs Voice?
Default: Text-to-speech sounds robotic
ElevenLabs: Studio-quality AI voices that sound human
Use cases:
- Answer phone calls professionally
- Wake-up calls with daily briefings
- Alerts when tasks complete/fail
- Voice conversations while driving
ElevenLabs handles:
- Natural conversation flow
- Turn-taking (knows when you're done talking)
- Multiple voice options
- Phone integration
Ready to give your bot professional voice?
Start Free with ElevenLabs →
10,000 free characters/month • No credit card required
Prerequisites
Before starting, you need:
Required:
- Mac, Windows, or Linux computer
- Node.js 22 or newer (Download here)
- Terminal/command line access
For voice features:
- ElevenLabs account (free tier available)
- ngrok installed (for phone calls)
- Twilio account (optional - only for phone numbers)
Costs:
- OpenClaw: Free (open source)
- ElevenLabs: Free tier, then $5/mo
- Twilio: ~$1/mo for phone number
Install OpenClaw CLI
Open your terminal and run:
npm install -g openclaw
Wait for installation to complete.
Start OpenClaw
openclaw start
First time setup will:
- Create config files
- Ask for API keys
- Set up authentication
Add Your AI Model
OpenClaw asks for an AI provider. Choose one:
Option 1: Anthropic (recommended)
- Go to console.anthropic.com
- Get API key
- Paste when OpenClaw asks
Option 2: OpenAI
- Go to platform.openai.com
- Get API key
- Paste when prompted
Option 3: Other providers
- OpenClaw supports many AI models
- Follow prompts for your choice
Test Basic Chat
openclaw chat
Type a message. Your bot should respond.
Working? Great! Continue to voice setup.
Get ElevenLabs API Key
- Sign up at ElevenLabs
- Go to API Keys page
- Click "Create API Key"
- Copy the key (you'll need it soon)
Free tier includes:
- 10,000 characters/month
- 3 custom voices
- Commercial license
Pro tier ($5/mo):
- 30,000 characters/month
- Unlimited custom voices
- Phone call features
Start with the free tier, upgrade only when you need more
Get Your Free ElevenLabs Account →
Takes 2 minutes • No credit card • Keep free forever if you stay under 10k chars
Enable Chat Completions Endpoint
OpenClaw needs to expose an API endpoint for ElevenLabs.
Edit your config:
openclaw config edit
Find the gateway section and add:
{
"gateway": {
"http": {
"endpoints": {
"chatCompletions": {
"enabled": true
}
}
}
}
}
Save and restart OpenClaw:
openclaw restart
Expose OpenClaw with ngrok
ElevenLabs needs to reach your OpenClaw. ngrok creates a public URL.
Install ngrok:
brew install ngrok
(Or download from ngrok.com)
Start ngrok tunnel:
ngrok http 18789
You'll see output like:
Forwarding https://abc123.ngrok.io -> http://localhost:18789
Copy that URL (abc123.ngrok.io part) - you need it next.
Keep this terminal open!
Create ElevenLabs Agent
Two options: Manual setup or API (your coding agent can do this).
Option A: Manual Setup
- Go to ElevenLabs Agents
- Click "Create New Agent"
- Under LLM settings, select "Custom LLM"
- Set URL to:
https://YOUR-NGROK-URL.ngrok.io/v1/chat/completions - Add authentication header:
- Key:
Authorization - Value:
Bearer YOUR_OPENCLAW_TOKEN
- Key:
Where to find OpenClaw token:
cat ~/.openclaw/openclaw.json | grep token
Option B: API Setup (Advanced)
Ask your OpenClaw chat agent to set this up:
Install ElevenLabs integration using my API key: sk-...
It will handle the API calls for you.
Test Your Voice Agent
In ElevenLabs dashboard:
- Click "Test" on your agent
- Speak into your microphone
- Your OpenClaw should respond with AI voice!
Working? You now have voice AI!
🎉 Congrats! Your AI has a professional voice.
Want even better voices? Upgrade to Pro for voice cloning and 3x more characters.
Explore ElevenLabs Pro Features →
Only $5/mo • Clone your own voice • Unlimited custom voices
Add Phone Number (Optional)
Want to call your OpenClaw or let it call you?
Get Twilio Number
- Sign up at Twilio
- Buy a phone number (~$1/mo)
- Copy your Account SID and Auth Token
Connect Twilio to ElevenLabs
In your ElevenLabs agent:
- Go to Phone section
- Enter Twilio credentials
- Select your Twilio number
- Save
Done! Your OpenClaw now has a phone number.
Test Phone Call
Call the Twilio number. Your OpenClaw answers!
Make Your Bot Call You
Want wake-up calls or status alerts?
Install ElevenLabs Skills
Tell your OpenClaw:
openclaw chat
Then type:
Install these skills globally: npx skills add elevenlabs/skills
Add API Key to Skills
openclaw dashboard
Go to Skills tab → Find "agents" → Add your ElevenLabs API key
Security tip: Limit API key scope to "agents-write" only
Test Outbound Call
Ask your OpenClaw:
Call <your phone number> using agents skill
It will ask for:
- Agent ID - from ElevenLabs agent page
- Outbound Phone ID - from ElevenLabs phone numbers tab
After successful call:
Put these IDs in your memory
Now it can call you autonomously!
Use Cases & Automation
Morning Wake-Up Call
Set a cron job:
Call me at 7am daily with weather and calendar briefing
Failure Alerts
Call me if any deployment fails
Gym Progress Check
Call me every Monday to review workout logs
Your OpenClaw becomes your personal assistant.
Common Issues & Fixes
Issue: "Connection refused"
Fix: Make sure OpenClaw is running:
openclaw status
If not running:
openclaw start
Issue: ngrok URL not working
Fix: Check ngrok is running and URL is correct:
curl https://YOUR-NGROK-URL.ngrok.io/v1/chat/completions
Should return JSON, not error.
Issue: No voice response
Fix:
- Check ElevenLabs API key is valid
- Verify Custom LLM URL is correct
- Test OpenClaw chat works without voice first
Issue: Bot doesn't remember context
Fix: Make sure you're using same agent instance. Add session key to preserve context.
Pricing Breakdown
Free Setup:
- OpenClaw: Free
- ElevenLabs: 10k chars/mo free
- Anthropic: $5 credit on signup
Total to start: $0
Production Setup:
- OpenClaw: Free
- ElevenLabs Pro: $5/mo
- Anthropic: ~$10/mo (moderate use)
- Twilio number: $1/mo
- Twilio calls: $0.0085/min
Total: ~$16/mo for full voice assistant
Next Steps
Now that your OpenClaw has voice:
Learn more:
Upgrade for more:
- More voices with ElevenLabs Pro
- Clone your own voice
- Longer conversations
- Better quality
Get Professional AI Voices
Ready to give your bot studio-quality voice?
ElevenLabs Features:
- Natural-sounding voices (99% human-like)
- 29+ languages supported
- Clone your own voice (Pro)
- Phone integration included
- Real-time conversations
Trusted by 1M+ developers worldwide.
Special: Start Free Today
10,000 characters free every month (≈10 minutes of voice)
No credit card required • Upgrade anytime to Pro
Claim Your Free ElevenLabs Account →
Why developers choose ElevenLabs for OpenClaw:
- ✅ Best voice quality (way better than alternatives)
- ✅ Easiest phone integration (works with Twilio out of box)
- ✅ Real conversation flow (handles turn-taking automatically)
- ✅ Free tier is actually useful (not a trial)
- ✅ Scales with you (Pro is only $5/mo)
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: OpenClaw, Clawdbot, or Moltbot - which is it?
Same tool, different names. Started as Clawdbot, briefly changed to Moltbot, now officially OpenClaw. All guides work for any name.
Q: Can I use other voice providers?
Yes, but ElevenLabs has the best conversation flow and phone integration. Others require more setup.
Q: Is my data private?
OpenClaw runs locally. Your conversations stay on your machine. ElevenLabs processes audio but doesn't store conversations by default.
Q: Can I clone my own voice?
Yes! ElevenLabs Pro ($5/mo) includes voice cloning. Upload 1 minute of your voice.
Q: Does this work on Windows?
Yes. OpenClaw works on Mac, Windows, and Linux. Some commands differ slightly.
Q: Can my bot call multiple people?
Yes. Store multiple phone numbers and have it call based on context (emergency to you, updates to team, etc.)
Related Guides
More OpenClaw tutorials:
More voice guides:
Get Started with Voice AI:
Start Free with ElevenLabs →
Free tier • 10,000 characters/month • No credit card required
Disclosure: Some links are affiliate links. We earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
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