OpenClaw Voice Wake & Talk Mode: Hands-Free AI Assistant Guide

Voice Wake & Talk Mode is OpenClaw’s #3 most-starred skill (980 stars) for a reason: it transforms your AI assistant into a truly hands-free companion. Whether you’re driving, cooking, or need accessibility support, this guide shows you how to set up natural voice interactions with custom wake words and high-quality text-to-speech responses.

What Is Voice Wake & Talk Mode?

Voice Wake & Talk Mode enables continuous hands-free interaction with OpenClaw through voice commands. Simply say your wake word (default: “Hey Claw”), speak your request, and receive a spoken response — all without touching your device.

Key capabilities:

• Custom wake word detection (local, always-listening)
• Automatic speech-to-text transcription
• Natural language processing via your chosen LLM
• High-quality text-to-speech responses (ElevenLabs, system voices, or cloud TTS)
• Multi-platform support (macOS, iOS, Android, Linux)

How It Works

Voice Wake & Talk Mode operates through a four-stage pipeline:

1. Wake Word Detection — Low-power local listening for your custom phrase
2. Speech Recognition — Converts your voice to text using local or cloud STT
3. LLM Processing — Routes the transcription to your configured AI model
4. Voice Response — Generates natural speech output via TTS providers

Unlike cloud-only voice assistants, OpenClaw processes wake word detection locally to minimize latency and preserve privacy. Only active speech is sent to transcription services.

Platform Support

Platform	Status	Notes
macOS	Native	Full support via built-in APIs
iOS	Shortcuts	Requires iOS Shortcuts configuration
Android	Termux	Runs via Termux environment
Linux	Experimental	Requires manual audio device setup

Minimum Requirements:

• OpenClaw 2026.2.0 or later
• Microphone access
• Internet connection (for cloud TTS/STT providers)

Installation

Step 1: Install the Skill

openclaw skill install voice-wake-talk

Verify installation:

openclaw skill list | grep voice-wake-talk

Step 2: Platform-Specific Setup

macOS

Grant microphone permissions when prompted:

openclaw config set voice.platform macos
openclaw voice setup

The setup wizard will request microphone access. Click Allow in System Settings.

iOS

Install the iOS Shortcuts integration:

1. Download the OpenClaw Voice Shortcut
2. Run the shortcut once to configure permissions
3. Enable “Hey Siri, talk to Claw” trigger

Android (Termux)

Install required dependencies:

pkg install python portaudio
pip install pyaudio SpeechRecognition
openclaw config set voice.platform android

Linux

Configure your audio device:

sudo apt install portaudio19-dev python3-pyaudio
openclaw config set voice.inputDevice "hw:0,0"
openclaw voice test-mic

Step 3: Verify Installation

Test your microphone and wake word detection:

openclaw voice test

Say your wake word followed by “Hello” — you should receive a voice response.

Wake Word Configuration

Default Wake Word

OpenClaw ships with “Hey Claw” as the default wake phrase. This works well in most environments but can be customized for your accent, language, or preference.

Setting a Custom Wake Word

openclaw config set voice.wakeWord "OK Assistant"

Best practices for wake words:

• 2-3 syllables — Easier to detect reliably (“Hey Claw” vs “Claw”)
• Distinct phonemes — Avoid common words like “the” or “okay”
• Test in your environment — Background noise affects accuracy

Sensitivity Tuning

Adjust the sensitivity threshold to balance false positives and false negatives:

# More sensitive (may trigger on background speech)
openclaw config set voice.wakeSensitivity 0.7

# Less sensitive (requires clearer pronunciation)
openclaw config set voice.wakeSensitivity 0.3

Default: 0.5 (balanced)

Tuning guide:

Environment	Recommended Sensitivity
Quiet office	0.4-0.5
Home with TV/music	0.3-0.4
Car or outdoors	0.6-0.7

Multi-Language Wake Words

Voice Wake & Talk Mode supports wake words in 15+ languages. Configure language-specific phoneme models:

# Spanish wake word
openclaw config set voice.wakeWord "Oye Garra"
openclaw config set voice.language es-ES

# French wake word
openclaw config set voice.wakeWord "Salut Griffe"
openclaw config set voice.language fr-FR

Voice Provider Options

OpenClaw supports multiple text-to-speech providers with varying quality, cost, and latency trade-offs:

Provider	Quality	Cost	Latency	Best For
System TTS	Basic	Free	50-100ms	Testing, offline use
ElevenLabs	Excellent	$5-30/mo	300-500ms	Production, natural voices
Google Cloud TTS	Good	$4/1M chars	200-400ms	Budget-conscious deployments
AWS Polly	Good	$4/1M chars	250-450ms	AWS ecosystem integration

System TTS (Default)

Uses your operating system’s built-in text-to-speech engine. Quality varies by platform:

openclaw config set voice.ttsProvider system

Pros:

• Free
• No API keys required
• Offline support
• Lowest latency

Cons:

• Robotic-sounding on some platforms
• Limited voice options
• No voice cloning

ElevenLabs (Recommended)

Natural-sounding voices with emotional intonation and optional voice cloning.

openclaw config set voice.ttsProvider elevenlabs
openclaw config set voice.elevenlabs.apiKey $ELEVENLABS_API_KEY
openclaw config set voice.elevenlabs.voiceId "21m00Tcm4TlvDq8ikWAM" # Rachel

Pros:

• Most natural-sounding voices
• Emotional expression support
• Voice cloning available
• Multi-language support

Cons:

• Requires paid subscription ($5-30/month)
• Higher latency (300-500ms)
• Internet connection required

Google Cloud TTS

Affordable cloud TTS with good quality:

openclaw config set voice.ttsProvider google
openclaw config set voice.google.apiKey $GOOGLE_CLOUD_TTS_KEY
openclaw config set voice.google.voiceId "en-US-Neural2-C"

AWS Polly

Amazon’s text-to-speech service:

openclaw config set voice.ttsProvider polly
openclaw config set voice.polly.region us-east-1
openclaw config set voice.polly.voiceId "Joanna"

ElevenLabs Integration (Detailed)

ElevenLabs provides the highest-quality voice output for OpenClaw. Here’s how to set it up:

Step 1: Create an ElevenLabs Account

1. Visit elevenlabs.io
2. Sign up for a free trial (10,000 characters/month)
3. Upgrade to a paid plan for production use

Pricing tiers:

Plan	Characters/Month	Cost	Voice Cloning
Free	10,000	$0	No
Starter	30,000	$5	Yes (1 voice)
Creator	100,000	$22	Yes (10 voices)
Pro	500,000	$99	Yes (30 voices)

Step 2: Choose a Voice Model

Browse the ElevenLabs Voice Library and select a voice:

# Rachel (versatile female voice)
openclaw config set voice.elevenlabs.voiceId "21m00Tcm4TlvDq8ikWAM"

# Adam (clear male voice)
openclaw config set voice.elevenlabs.voiceId "pNInz6obpgDQGcFmaJgB"

# Antoni (well-rounded male voice)
openclaw config set voice.elevenlabs.voiceId "ErXwobaYiN019PkySvjV"

Voice selection tips:

• Rachel — Clear, professional, works well for assistant tasks
• Adam — Deep, authoritative, ideal for briefings and summaries
• Antoni — Friendly, conversational, best for casual interactions

Step 3: Get Your API Key

1. Navigate to your ElevenLabs Profile
2. Copy your API key from the API Key section
3. Store it securely:

export ELEVENLABS_API_KEY="your_api_key_here"
openclaw config set voice.elevenlabs.apiKey $ELEVENLABS_API_KEY

Step 4: Configure Voice Settings

Adjust voice stability and clarity:

# Stability (0.0-1.0): Lower = more expressive, Higher = more consistent
openclaw config set voice.elevenlabs.stability 0.5

# Similarity (0.0-1.0): How closely to match the original voice
openclaw config set voice.elevenlabs.similarity 0.75

# Style (0.0-1.0): Experimental: adds more emotion
openclaw config set voice.elevenlabs.style 0.0

Step 5: Voice Cloning (Optional)

Clone your own voice for personalized responses:

1. Record 1-2 minutes of clear audio
2. Upload to ElevenLabs Voice Lab
3. Wait for processing (5-10 minutes)
4. Copy your custom voice ID:

openclaw config set voice.elevenlabs.voiceId "your_custom_voice_id"

Voice cloning tips:

• Record in a quiet environment
• Speak naturally at normal pace
• Include varied sentence types (statements, questions)
• Avoid background music or noise

Cost Estimates

Based on average response lengths:

Usage Level	Characters/Day	Monthly Characters	Estimated Cost
Light (10 interactions)	2,000	60,000	$5-11 (Starter/Creator)
Moderate (30 interactions)	6,000	180,000	$22 (Creator)
Heavy (100 interactions)	20,000	600,000	$99 (Pro)

Average response: ~200 characters

Usage Scenarios

Hands-Free Task Capture While Walking

Record tasks and ideas during your morning walk:

You: “Hey Claw, add to my task list: draft Q2 roadmap deck by Friday.”

OpenClaw: “Added to your task list: draft Q2 roadmap deck, due Friday. Anything else?”

Configuration:

openclaw config set voice.continueListening true
openclaw config set voice.endAfterResponse false

Voice-Driven Morning Briefings

Get your daily briefing while making coffee:

You: “Hey Claw, morning briefing.”

OpenClaw: “Good morning. You have three meetings today: team standup at 9, client demo at 2, and design review at 4. Two high-priority tasks due today: review pull requests and finalize budget proposal.”

Setup:

openclaw skill install calendar-scheduler
openclaw config set voice.briefingEnabled true
openclaw config set voice.briefingTrigger "morning briefing"

Cooking Timer and Recipe Assistance

Keep your hands free while cooking:

You: “Hey Claw, set a timer for 12 minutes.”

OpenClaw: “Timer set for 12 minutes. I’ll let you know when it’s done.”

You: “Hey Claw, how much flour is in this recipe?”

OpenClaw: “The recipe calls for 2 cups of all-purpose flour.”

Integration:

openclaw skill install home-assistant
openclaw config set voice.kitchenMode true

Accessibility for Visually Impaired Users

Enable full voice navigation:

openclaw config set voice.a11yMode true
openclaw config set voice.verboseResponses true
openclaw config set voice.readAllText true

Features:

• Spoken navigation instructions
• Detailed error messages
• Confirmation prompts for actions
• Screen reader compatibility

Performance Optimization

Reducing Latency

Local STT vs Cloud:

Approach	Latency	Accuracy	Cost
Local (Whisper)	100-300ms	Good	Free
Cloud (Google/AWS)	200-500ms	Excellent	$0.006-0.024/min

Recommended for low latency:

# Use local Whisper model
openclaw config set voice.sttProvider whisper-local
openclaw voice download-model base.en

# Enable streaming mode
openclaw config set voice.streamingMode true

Recommended for accuracy:

# Use cloud STT
openclaw config set voice.sttProvider google

Bandwidth Considerations

Voice mode bandwidth usage:

Component	Bandwidth (per minute)
Wake word detection	0 KB (local)
Speech-to-text (cloud)	100-200 KB
Text-to-speech (ElevenLabs)	150-300 KB
Total	250-500 KB/min

For metered connections:

# Use system TTS (no bandwidth)
openclaw config set voice.ttsProvider system

# Cache common responses
openclaw config set voice.enableCache true

Battery Impact on Mobile

Optimize for battery life:

# Reduce wake word polling frequency
openclaw config set voice.wakePollingInterval 500 # ms

# Disable continuous listening
openclaw config set voice.continueListening false

# Use push-to-talk mode
openclaw config set voice.pushToTalk true

Battery usage estimates (per hour):

Mode	Battery Drain
Always listening	8-12%
Wake word only	3-5%
Push-to-talk	1-2%

Privacy Considerations

Local vs Cloud Processing

What stays local:

• Wake word detection (never leaves your device)
• Audio buffering (stored in RAM, cleared after transcription)
• Configuration and preferences

What goes to the cloud:

• Active speech after wake word (sent to STT provider)
• Transcribed text (sent to your LLM provider)
• TTS responses (if using cloud TTS)

Wake Word False Activation

Minimize accidental triggers:

# Require double activation
openclaw config set voice.confirmationMode true

# Log wake word triggers
openclaw config set voice.logWakeEvents true

# Review false activations
openclaw voice show-wake-log

Audio Data Retention

Configure how long audio is retained:

# Delete audio immediately after transcription
openclaw config set voice.retainAudio false

# Or retain for debugging (30 days max)
openclaw config set voice.retainAudio true
openclaw config set voice.retentionDays 7

Provider retention policies:

Provider	Audio Retention	Opt-Out
Google Cloud STT	None (by default)	N/A
AWS Transcribe	None (by default)	N/A
ElevenLabs	None	N/A
Whisper (local)	Never leaves device	N/A

FAQ

Does voice mode work offline?

Partial offline support: Wake word detection and local Whisper STT work offline, but cloud TTS and LLM processing require internet.

Full offline setup:

openclaw config set voice.sttProvider whisper-local
openclaw config set voice.ttsProvider system
openclaw config set ai.provider ollama # Local LLM

This configuration enables fully offline voice interactions with reduced accuracy and voice quality.

Can I use my own voice for responses?

Yes, via ElevenLabs voice cloning:

1. Upgrade to ElevenLabs Starter plan or higher
2. Record 1-2 minutes of your voice
3. Upload to Voice Lab
4. Configure your custom voice ID

Alternative: Use OpenVoice for free voice cloning (experimental):

openclaw skill install openvoice-tts
openclaw voice clone --input my-voice.wav

How accurate is wake word detection?

Accuracy depends on:

• Environment noise — Quiet: 95-98%, Noisy: 75-85%
• Accent — Native speakers: 95%+, Non-native: 80-90%
• Wake word choice — Distinct phrases: 95%+, Common words: 70-80%

Improve accuracy:

# Train on your voice
openclaw voice train-wake-word --samples 10

# Use phonetically distinct wake word
openclaw config set voice.wakeWord "Computer Claw"

# Increase sensitivity in quiet environments
openclaw config set voice.wakeSensitivity 0.6

Next Steps

Now that you have Voice Wake & Talk Mode configured, expand your hands-free capabilities:

• Home Assistant Control — Control your smart home with voice commands
• Calendar Scheduler — Manage your schedule hands-free
• Morning Manifesto — Start your day with voice-driven planning

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Have questions? Join our Discord community or check the documentation.