OpenClaw System Prompt Words

1. Course Content

Course Overview

• 💡 OpenClaw adopts an innovative "file as prompt" architecture — the AI Agent's behavior, identity, memory, tool usage rules, etc., are all defined and loaded through multiple Markdown files in the Workspace.

2. 📂 Switch Workspace

• OpenClaw's system prompt words and skills are stored in: $HOME/.openclaw/workspace workspace path

• The factory preset includes different workspace contents in Chinese and English. The content meaning is the same, only the language differs. You can switch the OpenClaw workspace document language based on your needs. The factory default document is in Chinese.

  ~/MODELS/openclaw
  

• Click the desktop app to configure Chinese or English.

  

  Click Voice and Interaction Language and select zh or en.

  

  After modification, click Save and Exit.

  

After switching successfully, you need to enter /reset in the corresponding session to reset the conversation.

3. AGENTS.md

• Function Description

AGENTS.md defines the top-level specifications for how the Agent operates in the workspace. 📖 It can be understood as the Agent's "user manual" — telling the Agent how to start up, how to manage memory, what things it can do, and what things it absolutely cannot do.

• Content Structure

AGENTS.md mainly includes the following core sections:

4. SOUL.md

• Function Description

SOUL.md is the Agent's "soul" and kernel 🧠. It defines the Agent's thinking methods and behavioral guidelines when facing tasks — how to control the robot body, how to find and use skills, how to plan and execute actions, and under what circumstances it should pause or refuse execution. SOUL.md shapes the Agent's core behavioral pattern as a "robot operator".

• Working Principle

SOUL.md is read by the Agent at session startup as the underlying guiding principle for task execution. It does not specify concrete skill parameters but rather defines what kind of thinking process the Agent should use when encountering any task. For example, the Agent is forced to check the skill library before starting any task, and cannot execute directly based on feeling or memory — this habit of "checking documentation before doing work" is defined by SOUL.md.

5. IDENTITY.md

• Function Description

IDENTITY.md defines the AI Agent's self-awareness and personality characteristics. It defines who the Agent "is" — its name, personality, language style, and basic identity positioning. This file gives the Agent a consistent personality when interacting with users.

• Working Principle

At each session startup, the Agent reads IDENTITY.md and establishes "self-awareness" based on it. This information affects the Agent's tone when answering questions, the way it proactively offers help, and the style it uses to build relationships with users. For example, an Agent set to be "friendly and gentle" will naturally use more amicable language expressions when replying to users.

6. HEARTBEAT.md

• Function Description

HEARTBEAT.md is the configuration file that controls the heartbeat detection mechanism in OpenClaw ⏰. The heartbeat mechanism allows the Agent to periodically "wake up" and execute background checks and maintenance tasks without user-initiated sessions. This is similar to robot automatic timed inspection — the Agent can silently complete memory organization, status checks, and other work in the background.

• Working Principle

The OpenClaw Gateway periodically checks the content of the HEARTBEAT.md file to decide whether to trigger the Agent's heartbeat API call:

• File is empty or contains only comments: Skip heartbeat call, Agent will not be woken up in the background

7. 🛠️ TOOLS.md

• Function Description

TOOLS.md is the Agent's localized notes for tool usage 📝. In the OpenClaw system, "Skills" define the general working methods of tools, while TOOLS.md records the Agent's own unique configurations and personalized settings. Simply put: Skills are instruction manuals (general), and TOOLS.md is your personal notes (unique).

• Working Principle

During a session, the Agent reads both relevant Skills documentation to understand the general usage of tools and reads TOOLS.md to obtain configurations related to its own deployment environment.

8. 👤 USER.md

• Function Description

USER.md is the dedicated file for the Agent to understand and remember user information. If IDENTITY.md is the window for the Agent to understand "who I am", then USER.md is the window for the Agent to understand "who you are interacting with". It records the user's basic information, preferences, project background, and other contextual information, helping the Agent provide more personalized and thoughtful service.

• Working Principle

At each session startup, the Agent reads USER.md according to the process specified in AGENTS.md. Through this file, the Agent can:

• Know how to address the user (name, form of address)

• Understand the user's timezone, preferences, and other background information

• Remember things the user cares about and projects in progress

9. 🧠 MEMORY.md

• Function Description

MEMORY.md is the AI Agent's long-term memory file 📚. In OpenClaw's memory system, there are two levels of memory storage:

1. 📓 Daily Records (memory/YYYY-MM-DD.md): Records raw events and dialogue logs that occur each day, similar to a human's "diary"

2. 🗂️ Long-term Memory (MEMORY.md): Refined information extracted from daily records, similar to a human's "long-term memory" — containing important events, learned experiences, key decisions, and insights

• Working Principle

The loading and use of MEMORY.md follows these rules:

• Loaded only in main sessions: When the user directly converses with the Agent, the Agent reads MEMORY.md to obtain long-term memory

• Maintained autonomously by the Agent: The Agent can freely read, edit, and update MEMORY.md during main sessions

• ✏️ Proactively write important information: Write content you think the Agent should remember long-term directly into MEMORY.md

• 👀 Observe Agent autonomous maintenance: After the Agent runs for a period of time, look at the content automatically accumulated in MEMORY.md

• 🔄 Manage memory content: Regularly check and organize MEMORY.md, remove outdated information, ensuring long-term memory remains refined and accurate