Agent send

openclaw agent runs a single agent turn from the command line without an inbound chat message. Use it for scripted workflows, testing, and programmatic delivery. Full flag and behavior reference: Agent CLI reference.

Quick start

1. Run a simple agent turn

   openclaw agent --agent main --message "What is the weather today?"
   

   Sends the message through the Gateway and prints the reply.

2. Send a multiline prompt from a file

   openclaw agent --agent ops --message-file ./task.md
   

   Reads a valid UTF-8 file as the agent message body.

3. Target a specific agent or session

   # Target a specific agent
   openclaw agent --agent ops --message "Summarize logs"
   
   # Target a phone number (derives session key)
   openclaw agent --to [phone] --message "Status update"
   
   # Reuse an existing session
   openclaw agent --session-id abc123 --message "Continue the task"
   
   # Target an exact session key
   openclaw agent --session-key agent:ops:incident-42 --message "Summarize status"
   
4. Deliver the reply to a channel

   # Deliver to WhatsApp (default channel)
   openclaw agent --to [phone] --message "Report ready" --deliver
   
   # Deliver to Slack
   openclaw agent --agent ops --message "Generate report" \
     --deliver --reply-channel slack --reply-to "#reports"
   

Flags

Flag	Description
--message <text>	Inline message to send
--message-file <path>	Read the message from a valid UTF-8 file
--to <dest>	Derive session key from a target (phone, chat id)
--session-key <key>	Use an explicit session key
--agent <id>	Target a configured agent (uses its main session)
--session-id <id>	Reuse an existing session by id
--model <id>	Model override for this run (provider/model or model id)
--local	Force local embedded runtime (skip Gateway)
--deliver	Send the reply to a chat channel
--channel <name>	Delivery channel; with --agent + --to, also applies DM scope
--reply-to <target>	Delivery target override
--reply-channel <name>	Delivery channel override
--reply-account <id>	Delivery account id override
--thinking <level>	Set thinking level for the selected model profile
--verbose <on|full|off>	Persist verbose level for the session (full also logs tool output)
--timeout <seconds>	Override agent timeout (default 600, or config value)
--json	Output structured JSON

Behavior

• By default, the CLI goes through the Gateway. Add --local to force the embedded runtime on the current machine.
• Pass exactly one of --message or --message-file. File messages preserve multiline content after removing an optional UTF-8 BOM.
• If the Gateway request fails, the CLI falls back to the local embedded run; a Gateway timeout falls back with a fresh session instead of racing the original transcript.
• Session selection: --to derives the session key (group/channel targets preserve isolation; direct chats collapse to main). With --agent, --channel, and --to together, routing follows the channel’s canonical recipient and session.dmScope. Stable outbound-only identities use a provider-owned session isolated from the agent’s main session.
• --session-key selects an explicit key. Agent-prefixed keys must use agent:<agent-id>:<session-key>, and --agent must match that agent id when both are supplied. Bare non-sentinel keys are scoped to --agent when supplied; for example, --agent ops --session-key incident-42 routes to agent:ops:incident-42. Without --agent, bare non-sentinel keys are scoped to the configured default agent. Literal global and unknown remain unscoped only when no --agent is supplied; the embedded fallback path resolves those sentinel sessions to the configured default agent.
• --reply-channel and --reply-account affect delivery only.
• Thinking and verbose flags persist into the session store.
• Output: plain text by default, or --json for structured payload + metadata.
• With --json --deliver, the JSON includes delivery status for sent, suppressed, partial, and failed sends. See JSON delivery status.

Examples

# Simple turn with JSON output
openclaw agent --to [phone] --message "Trace logs" --verbose on --json

# Turn with a model override
openclaw agent --agent ops --model openai/gpt-5.4 --message "Summarize logs"

# Turn with thinking level
openclaw agent --session-id 1234 --message "Summarize inbox" --thinking medium

# Multiline prompt from a file
openclaw agent --agent ops --message-file ./task.md

# Exact session key
openclaw agent --session-key agent:ops:incident-42 --message "Summarize status"

# Legacy key scoped to an agent
openclaw agent --agent ops --session-key incident-42 --message "Summarize status"

# Deliver to a different channel than the session
openclaw agent --agent ops --message "Alert" --deliver --reply-channel telegram --reply-to "@admin"

Related

Agent CLI reference

Full openclaw agent flag and option reference.

Sub-agents

Background sub-agent spawning.

Sessions

How session keys work and how --to, --agent, and --session-id resolve them.

Slash commands

Native command catalog used inside agent sessions.