xai | Friends of the Crustacean 🦞🤝 | Page 1

mystic kestrel Apr 15, 2026, 2:00 AM

#

whats the syntax to put this in openclaw.json is it like this?
is there any doc that explains the syntax in this file and any tools to help maintain it

"plugins": {
"entries": {

"xai": {
"enabled": true,
"apiKey": "${XAI_API_KEY}"
},
"telegram": {
"enabled": true
},
"google": {
"enabled": true,
"config": {
"webSearch": {
"apiKey

tawny thornBOT Apr 15, 2026, 2:12 AM

#

Close, but two fixes:

openclaw.json is JSON5, so comments, trailing commas, and ${ENV_VAR} are valid.
telegram goes under channels, not plugins.entries.

{
  channels: {
    telegram: {
      enabled: true,
    },
  },

  plugins: {
    entries: {
      xai: {

#

        enabled: true,
        config: {
          webSearch: {
            apiKey: "${XAI_API_KEY}",
          },
        },
      },
      google: {
        enabled: true,
        config: {
          webSearch: {
            apiKey: "${GEMINI_API_KEY}",
          },
        },
      },

#

    },
  },

  // optional, only if you want a default web_search provider
  tools: {
    web: {
      search: {
        provider: "grok", // or "gemini"
      },
    },
  },
}

Put the env vars in ~/.openclaw/.env if you want to use ${...}.

#

Docs:

Helpful commands:

openclaw config file
openclaw config validate
openclaw config schema
openclaw configure
openclaw doctor

#

If you paste the full config block you want, I can rewrite it into valid openclaw.json for you.

mystic kestrel Apr 15, 2026, 2:28 AM

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did you send me a friend request or is that spam impersonator

tawny thornBOT Apr 15, 2026, 2:29 AM

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Nope, not me.

I do not send friend requests or random DMs here, so if someone is using my name/avatar, treat it as an impersonator or spam.

Best move:

don’t accept it
don’t click links
block/report the account
if you want, post the username/user ID here and I can sanity check it

mystic kestrel Apr 15, 2026, 2:30 AM

#

krilll1161

tawny thornBOT Apr 15, 2026, 2:31 AM

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Yeah, that’s the username this account shows as here.

But I still didn’t send you a friend request. I don’t do outbound friend adds/DM outreach, so if one showed up from that name, I’d treat it as suspicious and ignore/report it.

If you want, paste the full profile ID or a screenshot with personal stuff cropped and I’ll sanity check it.

mystic kestrel Apr 15, 2026, 2:33 AM

#

krilll1161

840590466835021854

https://cdn.discordapp.com/avatars/840590466835021854/c6ad65fe7db5b735dea869f205e8f92c.webp?size=3072

tawny thornBOT Apr 15, 2026, 2:34 AM

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Yep, that username + ID + avatar match the account posting here.

So if the friend request shows that exact ID, it’s not a lookalike impersonator, it’s this same Discord account.

That said, you do not need to accept it for support. If it feels weird, just decline/ignore it, support should stay in-thread here.

mystic kestrel Apr 15, 2026, 2:34 AM

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But then who sent it is your account compromised

tawny thornBOT Apr 15, 2026, 2:35 AM

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I can’t verify “compromised” from inside the chat, so I don’t want to make that up.

What I can say is:

you do not need to accept any friend request for support
if it was unexpected, decline/block it
keep everything in-thread here, not DMs

If you’re seeing the exact same account ID, then it wasn’t a visual impersonator. Beyond that, it needs a human account/security check, not guessing from me here.

mystic kestrel Apr 15, 2026, 2:35 AM

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ok. back to json editing tips

tawny thornBOT Apr 15, 2026, 2:36 AM

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Yep. My practical tips:

openclaw.json is JSON5, not strict JSON. So comments, trailing commas, and ${ENV_VAR} are fine.
Keep these sections separate:
- channels.telegram for Telegram
- plugins.entries.xai / plugins.entries.google for provider config
- tools.web.search for choosing the default search provider
For secrets, prefer ~/.openclaw/.env, then reference them in config as ${XAI_API_KEY} / ${GEMINI_API_KEY}.
For small edits, use the CLI instead of hand-editing:
- openclaw config file
- openclaw config get ...
- openclaw config set ...
- openclaw config unset ...
- openclaw config validate
If you want guided setup, use openclaw configure or openclaw config --section web.
If the config stops loading, run openclaw doctor.

#

Common gotchas:

telegram under plugins is wrong, it belongs under channels
xai.apiKey is wrong for web search, use plugins.entries.xai.config.webSearch.apiKey
google web search key goes under plugins.entries.google.config.webSearch.apiKey

Minimal shape:

{
  channels: {
    telegram: {
      enabled: true,
    },
  },
  plugins: {
    entries: {

#

      xai: {
        enabled: true,
        config: {
          webSearch: {
            apiKey: "${XAI_API_KEY}",
          },
        },
      },
      google: {
        enabled: true,
        config: {
          webSearch: {
            apiKey: "${GEMINI_API_KEY}",
          },
        },

#

      },
    },
  },
}

Docs:

If you want, send the exact features you want on, and I’ll turn it into a clean full openclaw.json block.

mystic kestrel Apr 15, 2026, 2:38 AM

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"botToken": ${TELEGRAM_API_KEY},

is good? or " needed

tawny thornBOT Apr 15, 2026, 2:38 AM

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You need the quotes around the value.

Use:

botToken: "${TELEGRAM_BOT_TOKEN}",

or, if you really named your env var TELEGRAM_API_KEY:

botToken: "${TELEGRAM_API_KEY}",

Without quotes, it’s invalid.

Small tip, in openclaw.json the key quotes are optional because it’s JSON5, so this is also fine:

#

channels: {
  telegram: {
    botToken: "${TELEGRAM_BOT_TOKEN}",
  },
},

mystic kestrel Apr 15, 2026, 2:40 AM

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vscode editor says
botToken: "${TELEGRAM_API_KEY}",

so does "botToken" need to be in quotes too

tawny thornBOT Apr 15, 2026, 2:40 AM

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botToken does not need quotes in OpenClaw config, because the file is parsed as JSON5.

So both are valid:

botToken: "${TELEGRAM_API_KEY}",

"botToken": "${TELEGRAM_API_KEY}",

If VS Code is complaining, it’s probably treating the file like strict JSON. Easiest fix, just quote the keys to keep the editor happy:

"botToken": "${TELEGRAM_API_KEY}",

#

So:

key quotes, optional
value quotes around ${...}, required

mystic kestrel Apr 15, 2026, 2:52 AM

#

anything wrong in this area

19:49:05 [plugins] google invalid config: webSearch: must NOT have additional properties

"xai": {
"enabled": true,
"apiKey": "${XAI_API_KEY}"
},
"google": {
"enabled": true,
"config": {
"webSearch": {
"apikey": "${GEMINI_API_KEY}"
},
},

tawny thornBOT Apr 15, 2026, 2:52 AM

#

Yep, two things are wrong there:

apikey should be apiKey. Case matters.
For xai, the key should also live under config.webSearch.apiKey, not directly under xai.apiKey.

Use this shape instead:

plugins: {
  entries: {
    xai: {
      enabled: true,
      config: {
        webSearch: {
          apiKey: "${XAI_API_KEY}",
        },

#

      },
    },
    google: {
      enabled: true,
      config: {
        webSearch: {
          apiKey: "${GEMINI_API_KEY}",
        },
      },
    },
  },
},

That log message is basically complaining that webSearch.apikey is an unknown field.

#

If you want, paste the whole surrounding config and I’ll sanity-check the rest too.

mystic kestrel Apr 15, 2026, 2:55 AM

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"plugins": {
"entries": {

"xai": {
"enabled": true,
"apiKey": "${XAI_API_KEY}"
},
"google": {
"enabled": true,
"config": {
"webSearch": {
"apikey": "${GEMINI_API_KEY}"
},
},
},
"tavily": {
"enabled": true,
"config": {
"webSearch": {
"apiKey": "{TAVILY_API_KEY}",
}
}
},
"device-pair": {
"enabled": true
}
}
},

tawny thornBOT Apr 15, 2026, 2:55 AM

#

Close, but 3 fixes:

xai.apiKey should be under xai.config.webSearch.apiKey
google.webSearch.apikey should be apiKey
"{TAVILY_API_KEY}" should be "${TAVILY_API_KEY}"

Corrected block:

plugins: {
  entries: {
    xai: {
      enabled: true,
      config: {
        webSearch: {
          apiKey: "${XAI_API_KEY}",

#

        },
      },
    },
    google: {
      enabled: true,
      config: {
        webSearch: {
          apiKey: "${GEMINI_API_KEY}",
        },
      },
    },
    tavily: {
      enabled: true,
      config: {
        webSearch: {

#

          apiKey: "${TAVILY_API_KEY}",
        },
      },
    },
    "device-pair": {
      enabled: true,
    },
  },
},

So the main errors were:

wrong nesting for xai
wrong capitalization for apiKey
missing $ in Tavily env var

#xai