Okay, let me break down how OpenClaw is built. It sits on 3 distinct layers, each with one clear job.
The Gateway is the central server that manages sessions and coordinates everything. The Channel Layer connects to your messaging platforms. The LLM Layer talks to AI model providers. Every message flows through all 3 layers in sequence: Channel receives your message, Gateway processes it, LLM generates a response, and the chain reverses to deliver the reply. Why does this matter? Because you can swap out any layer without touching the others.