Skip to main content
Use tk with OpenClaw to manage issues from any messaging platform — WhatsApp, Telegram, Slack, Discord, and more.

What is OpenClaw?

OpenClaw (formerly Clawdbot/Moltbot) is an open-source autonomous AI agent created by Peter Steinberger. Unlike IDE-based coding tools, OpenClaw is a messaging-first personal assistant that connects to 12+ channels (WhatsApp, Telegram, Slack, Discord, Signal, iMessage, and more). It runs locally as a daemon and can execute shell commands, browse the web, manage files, and — with the right skill — track your issues. OpenClaw uses a Skills system for extensibility. Skills are markdown files (SKILL.md) that teach the agent how to use tools for specific tasks.

Skill Setup

Create a tk skill to give OpenClaw context about your issue tracker.

Local Skill (Per-Project)

Create skills/ticket/SKILL.md in your project root:
---
name: ticket_rs
description: Dependency-aware issue tracking with tk (ticket-rs). Issues stored as Markdown in .tickets/.
metadata:
  openclaw:
    requires:
      bins: [tk]
---

# Issue Tracking with tk

This project uses **tk (ticket-rs)** for dependency-aware issue tracking.
Issues are stored as Markdown files in `.tickets/`.

## Quick Commands

- `tk triage` - AI-powered recommendations and project health
- `tk ready` - Find issues with no blockers
- `tk next` - Single top recommendation
- `tk create "Title" -t task -p 2` - Create issue
- `tk show <id>` - View issue details
- `tk close <id>` - Complete work
- `tk dep add <blocked> <blocker>` - Add dependency
- `tk dep tree <id>` - Visualize dependencies

## Issue Format

Issues are Markdown files with YAML frontmatter:

```markdown
---
status: open
type: feature
priority: 1
deps: [tk-abc123]
labels: [backend]
---
# Issue Title

Description here.
```

## Status Values

- `open` - Ready to be worked on
- `in_progress` - Currently being worked on
- `blocked` - Waiting on dependencies
- `closed` - Completed

## Priority Levels

- P0 (0) - Critical
- P1 (1) - High
- P2 (2) - Medium (default)
- P3 (3) - Low
- P4 (4) - Lowest

## Workflow

1. Start session: `tk triage` for AI recommendations
2. Find work: `tk ready` for unblocked issues
3. Claim work: `tk claim <id>` before starting
4. Complete work: `tk resolve <id>` to close and see unblocked issues

Global Skill (All Projects)

Place the same SKILL.md in ~/.openclaw/skills/ticket/ to make it available across all your projects.
OpenClaw skills load in priority order: workspace skills override user-level skills, which override bundled skills.

Heartbeat Integration

OpenClaw’s heartbeat scheduler can run tk triage on a cron schedule to proactively surface recommendations. Add to your ~/.openclaw/openclaw.json:
{
  "skills": {
    "ticket_rs": {
      "enabled": true,
      "settings": {
        "heartbeat": "0 9 * * 1-5"  // Weekday mornings at 9am
      }
    }
  }
}
This lets OpenClaw send you a morning triage summary over your preferred messaging channel.

MCP Integration

If your OpenClaw instance supports MCP servers, you can connect the ticket-mcp server for structured tool access:
// In ~/.openclaw/openclaw.json
{
  "skills": {
    "ticket_mcp": {
      "enabled": true,
      "mcp": {
        "command": "uvx",
        "args": ["ticket-mcp"]
      }
    }
  }
}
uv installed via: curl -LsSf https://astral.sh/uv/install.sh | shPython version 3.10 or higher (installed automatically by uv)

Workflow Tips

Morning Triage

Message OpenClaw: “Run tk triage and tell me what I should work on today” OpenClaw will execute tk triage and send back AI-powered recommendations with reasoning.

Creating Issues

Message OpenClaw: “Create a high-priority bug for the payment timeout issue” OpenClaw will run:
tk create "Fix payment timeout" -t bug -p 1

Closing Work

Message OpenClaw: “Resolve tk-abc123, the fix is deployed” OpenClaw will run tk resolve tk-abc123 and report any newly unblocked issues.

Project Health

Message OpenClaw: “How healthy is the project? Run tk insights” OpenClaw will analyze PageRank scores, dependency bottlenecks, and critical path.

Multi-Channel Workflows

OpenClaw’s unique strength is messaging-first interaction across platforms:
Configure OpenClaw in a team Slack channel to respond to tk triage requests, letting your whole team get issue recommendations without leaving Slack.
Message OpenClaw from WhatsApp or Telegram to create and manage issues on the go — no terminal or IDE required.
Use OpenClaw’s heartbeat scheduler to push daily tk standup summaries to your preferred channel every morning.
On macOS/iOS/Android with voice mode enabled, speak commands like “Create a task for updating the API docs, priority two” and OpenClaw translates to the right tk command.

Security Considerations

OpenClaw requires broad system permissions. When using it with tk:
  • Workspace restriction: Ensure $WORKSPACE_ROOT is set to limit file operations to your project directory
  • Tool policies: Only enable shell and write tools if needed for issue management
  • Approval workflows: Enable approval prompts for destructive commands like tk delete
Review OpenClaw’s security documentation for sandbox configuration and tool policy details.

Troubleshooting

Verify tk is in your PATH by running which tk in a terminal. Ensure the skill file is in the correct location (skills/ticket/SKILL.md or ~/.openclaw/skills/ticket/SKILL.md).
Check that the SKILL.md frontmatter is valid YAML. Run openclaw skills list to verify the skill is detected. Workspace skills take priority over global skills.
Ensure uvx is in your PATH. Check OpenClaw gateway logs with openclaw logs for connection errors. Restart the gateway with openclaw restart.
Enable caching with tk cache info to verify the analytics cache is active. Cached responses return in under 10ms.

Next Steps


Sources