OpenClaw + Minimax M2.5: Full Setup Guide

Before You Start

If you're thinking of running OpenClaw on your main PC, I'd strongly suggest using a VPS instead. Anything you can do on your PC, OpenClaw will be able to do on your PC, which is extremely risky if you have personal info on it.

A VPS is essentially just a fresh virtual PC. That way you're not risking any of your personal data and the VPS runs 24/7 so you'll have access to the bot whenever you want. It's also much cheaper than spending hundreds of dollars on a dedicated device like a Mac Mini.

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Minimax M2.5 has an Anthropic-compatible API, so it plugs straight into OpenClaw using the Anthropic provider with no extra tricks.

Step 1: Install Node.js

curl -o- https://raw.githubusercontent.com/nvm-sh/nvm/v0.39.7/install.sh | bash
source ~/.bashrc
nvm install node
node -v

Step 2: Install OpenClaw

npm install -g openclaw@latest

openclaw --version

Step 3: Run the Onboarding Wizard

openclaw onboard --install-daemon

Follow the wizard steps:

Select "Yes, I understand this is inherently risky" → Enter
Select Quick Start → Enter
Providers: select Skip for now → Enter
Select All Providers → then Keep current → Enter
Select Telegram → Enter
Go to Telegram, find @BotFather, send /newbot, create your bot, and copy the access token
Paste your bot token → Enter
Skills: press spacebar to deselect all → Enter
Install the gateway service when prompted
Select Do this later for hatching
You should see "Onboarding complete" → press Ctrl+C to exit back to terminal

Step 4: Get Your Minimax API Key

Go to platform.minimax.io → sign up with your email (you'll get some free credits).

Click Create New Secret Key, name it whatever you want (e.g. openclaw), and copy the key somewhere safe. You'll need it in the next step.

Step 5: Patch the Config for Minimax M2.5

Replace YOUR_MINIMAX_API_KEY with the key you just created.

python3 -c "
import json
with open('/root/.openclaw/openclaw.json') as f:
    cfg = json.load(f)
cfg['models'] = {'mode': 'merge', 'providers': {'minimax': {'baseUrl': 'https://api.minimax.io/anthropic', 'apiKey': 'YOUR_MINIMAX_API_KEY', 'api': 'anthropic-messages', 'models': [{'id': 'MiniMax-M2.5', 'name': 'Minimax M2.5', 'reasoning': False, 'input': ['text'], 'cost': {'input': 0, 'output': 0, 'cacheRead': 0, 'cacheWrite': 0}, 'contextWindow': 204800, 'maxTokens': 8192}]}}}
cfg['agents']['defaults']['model'] = {'primary': 'minimax/MiniMax-M2.5'}
cfg['agents']['defaults']['models'] = {'minimax/MiniMax-M2.5': {'alias': 'Minimax M2.5'}}
with open('/root/.openclaw/openclaw.json', 'w') as f:
    json.dump(cfg, f, indent=2)
print('Done')
"

You should see "Done" if it worked.

If you want the faster 100 tps variant instead, swap MiniMax-M2.5 with MiniMax-M2.5-highspeed in all three places above.

If you're not running as root, your config path might be ~/.openclaw/openclaw.json instead. Run cat /root/.openclaw/openclaw.json first to confirm the file exists.

Step 6: Restart the Gateway

systemctl --user restart openclaw-gateway

Step 7: Check Status

openclaw status

You should see Minimax M2.5 listed as the active model. If you see security warnings, that's normal for local setups but should be addressed for anything production-facing.

Step 8: Pair Telegram

Open your Telegram bot chat and send any message
The bot will reply with a pairing code and a command
Copy the command, replace the code, and paste it in your terminal:

openclaw pairing approve telegram YOUR_PAIRING_CODE

Make sure to remove any arrows/brackets from the code — just the plain code.

Step 9: Test It

openclaw chat

Try something like: Hello, introduce yourself briefly like a Texan cowboy.

If you get a response, you're all set. You can also message your Telegram bot directly — it's running Minimax M2.5 through OpenClaw.

Need a VPS?

If you don't have one yet, I use Hostinger for all my setups. Takes under a minute to get a clean Ubuntu server running. Use the link below for an extra 20% off.