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OpenProse

OpenProse is a portable, markdown-first workflow format for orchestrating AI sessions. In OpenClaw it ships as a plugin that installs an OpenProse skill pack plus a /prose slash command. Programs live in .prose files and can spawn multiple sub-agents with explicit control flow. Official site: https://www.prose.md

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What it can do

  • Multi-agent research + synthesis with explicit parallelism.
  • Repeatable approval-safe workflows (code review, incident triage, content pipelines).
  • Reusable .prose programs you can run across supported agent runtimes.

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Install + enable

Bundled plugins are disabled by default. Enable OpenProse:
Restart the Gateway after enabling the plugin. Dev/local checkout: openclaw plugins install ./extensions/open-prose Related docs: Plugins, Plugin manifest, Skills.

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Slash command

OpenProse registers /prose as a user-invocable skill command. It routes to the OpenProse VM instructions and uses OpenClaw tools under the hood. Common commands:

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Example: a simple .prose file

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File locations

OpenProse keeps state under .prose/ in your workspace:
User-level persistent agents live at:

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State modes

OpenProse supports multiple state backends:
  • filesystem (default): .prose/runs/...
  • in-context: transient, for small programs
  • sqlite (experimental): requires sqlite3 binary
  • postgres (experimental): requires psql and a connection string
Notes:
  • sqlite/postgres are opt-in and experimental.
  • postgres credentials flow into subagent logs; use a dedicated, least-privileged DB.

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Remote programs

/prose run <handle/slug> resolves to https://p.prose.md/<handle>/<slug>. Direct URLs are fetched as-is. This uses the web_fetch tool (or exec for POST).

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OpenClaw runtime mapping

OpenProse programs map to OpenClaw primitives: If your tool allowlist blocks these tools, OpenProse programs will fail. See Skills config.

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Security + approvals

Treat .prose files like code. Review before running. Use OpenClaw tool allowlists and approval gates to control side effects. For deterministic, approval-gated workflows, compare with Lobster.