Skip to main content

HEARTBEAT.md template

HEARTBEAT.md lives in the agent workspace and holds the periodic heartbeat checklist. Keep it empty, or with only whitespace, Markdown comments, ATX headings, empty list stubs (- , * [ ]), or fence markers, to make OpenClaw skip the heartbeat model call entirely (reason=empty-heartbeat-file). Shipped default content:
<!-- Heartbeat template; comments-only content prevents scheduled heartbeat API calls. -->

# Keep this file empty (or with only comments) to skip heartbeat API calls.

# Add tasks below when you want the agent to check something periodically.
Add short tasks below the comment lines only when you want periodic checks. Keep it small: heartbeat runs read this file every tick (default every 30 minutes), so bloated instructions burn tokens on every wake. For due-only checks instead of a plain checklist, use a structured tasks: block with per-task interval and prompt fields; see HEARTBEAT.md for the format and behavior.