Your ultra-lightweight bot deserves professional cloud infrastructure. Deploy to managed hosting with zero maintenance overhead.
Get Pico Claw up and running in minutes. This quick start guide walks you through hardware selection, installation, configuration, and your first interaction with picoclaw. From zero to AI assistant in under 30 minutes.
This guide covers everything you need to get Pico Claw running. Follow these steps in order for a smooth setup experience. Total time: approximately 20-30 minutes.
Pico Claw runs on diverse hardware platforms. Select based on your budget, use case, and availability. All options provide excellent picoclaw performance.
Best value for Pico Claw. Native RISC-V support, 256MB RAM, ultra-compact form factor. Perfect for beginners and edge deployments. Boots picoclaw in under 1 second.
Excellent if you already have Pi hardware. 512MB RAM provides massive headroom for Pico Claw. Large community and extensive documentation available.
Combines IP-KVM functionality with Pico Claw. Perfect for data center automation and remote server management. Based on LicheeRV Nano core.
Pico Claw runs on any Linux system with 64MB+ RAM. Desktop, server, VM, or embedded. RISC-V, ARM, and x86 architectures all supported.
Before installing Pico Claw, complete these preparation steps. Having everything ready ensures a smooth installation process.
Ensure your chosen hardware is powered on, running Linux, and accessible via SSH or direct terminal. Update system packages to latest versions.
ssh user@your-device
sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y
Verify network connectivity. PicoClaw needs internet access to reach AI APIs and platform services (Telegram, Discord, etc.).
ping -c 3 google.com
# Should show successful responses
Sign up for OpenAI, Anthropic Claude, or another supported AI service. Generate API key from their dashboard. Keep it secure.
If using Telegram: create bot via @BotFather. If using Discord: create application in Discord Developer Portal. Get bot tokens for config.yaml.
Choose your preferred installation method. Pre-built binary is fastest and recommended for most users. Build from source if you need customization.
Fastest method - download and run in seconds.
# RISC-V 64
wget https://github.com/sipeed/picoclaw/releases/latest/download/picoclaw-riscv64
# ARM 64
wget https://github.com/sipeed/picoclaw/releases/latest/download/picoclaw-arm64
# x86_64
wget https://github.com/sipeed/picoclaw/releases/latest/download/picoclaw-x86_64
chmod +x picoclaw-*
mv picoclaw-* picoclaw
For developers who want to customize Pico Claw.
wget https://go.dev/dl/go1.21.linux-$(uname -m).tar.gz
sudo tar -C /usr/local -xzf go1.21.linux-*.tar.gz
export PATH=$PATH:/usr/local/go/bin
git clone https://github.com/sipeed/picoclaw.git
cd picoclaw
go build -o picoclaw
Configure Pico Claw with your API keys and platform credentials. The config.yaml file controls all picoclaw settings and connections.
Run initialization to create default config.yaml. This generates a template with all configuration options explained.
./picoclaw --init
# Creates config.yaml in current directory
Edit config.yaml and add your AI service API key. This is required for Pico Claw to function. Use OpenAI, Anthropic Claude, or compatible service.
nano config.yaml
# Set: api_key: "your-api-key-here"
Add bot tokens for messaging platforms you want to use. Pico Claw supports Telegram (full), Discord (full), QQ, DingTalk, Feishu, and WhatsApp.
Start Pico Claw and verify everything works correctly. Your first run should complete in seconds with PicoClaw connecting to all configured services.
Run the picoclaw binary. It should boot in under 1 second and display connection status.
./picoclaw
# Watch for successful startup messages
Check logs to confirm PicoClaw connected to AI service and platforms successfully.
Send "hello" or "ping" through your configured platform. Pico Claw should respond within seconds.
Check memory usage and response times. Should see <10MB RAM usage and fast responses.
top -p $(pgrep picoclaw)
# Monitor resource usage
Now that Pico Claw is running, explore advanced features and customization options. Make picoclaw your own with skills, multi-platform support, and community tools.
Connect Pico Claw to multiple messaging platforms simultaneously. Run one picoclaw instance across Telegram, Discord, QQ, DingTalk, and more. Unified AI assistant everywhere you communicate.
Extend Pico Claw capabilities with skills from GitHub. Add tools for web search, code execution, file operations, and more. Install with simple git clone commands.
Explore config.yaml options for memory settings, persistent storage, custom prompts, and platform-specific features. Fine-tune picoclaw for your specific needs.
Connect with other Pico Claw users. Share skills, configurations, and use cases. Get help, report issues, and contribute to the growing picoclaw ecosystem.
You now have everything you need to run PicoClaw. Start with $9.9 hardware or any Linux device. Join thousands using ultra-lightweight AI on the edge.