What is an AI Assistant on VPS?
OpenClaw is a personal AI agent for messaging workflows across WhatsApp, Telegram, or Discord - including memory, cron jobs, and browser automation. OpenCode focuses on agentic coding as an open-source alternative to proprietary coding assistants.
Running both on your own VPS keeps them independent from local machines. Your agents stay reachable even when your laptop sleeps or your home network changes.
Why VPS instead of local?
A VPS provides 24/7 uptime, stable networking, predictable webhook delivery, and a fixed environment for background jobs. For messaging agents this is critical: sessions stay alive and incoming events are processed reliably.
Compared to local setups, you also get cleaner separation between development and production plus better operational stability.
Security is mandatory
Never expose agent gateways directly to the public internet. Use SSH tunnels, Tailscale, or a hardened reverse proxy with strict allow rules.
Run dedicated service accounts, enforce UFW firewall policies, and isolate integrations. Especially for secrets and credential tooling, limit access paths and avoid over-privileged defaults.
Cloud API vs. local LLMs
Cloud APIs (Anthropic/OpenAI) are the fastest path to production and work on smaller VPS plans. For moderate usage, monthly API spend is often around EUR 5-10.
Local LLMs with Ollama require significantly more RAM/CPU but reduce recurring API cost and improve data sovereignty. For sensitive workflows or stricter compliance requirements, local inference is often the better fit.