Forge — OpenClaw for Enterprise: A Secure, Portable AI Agent Runtime

Build, run, and deploy AI agents from a single SKILL.md file.
Secure by default. Runs anywhere — local, container, cloud, air-gapped.

Why Forge?

60-second setup — forge init wizard configures provider, keys, channels, and skills
Secure by default — outbound-only connections, egress allowlists, encrypted secrets, no public listeners
Portable — same agent runs locally, in Docker, Kubernetes, or inside Initializ Command
Observable — structured NDJSON audit logs with correlation IDs for every action
Extensible — add skills, tools, channels, and LLM providers without changing core code

Quick Start

# Install (pick one)
brew install initializ/tap/forge
curl -sSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/initializ/forge/main/install.sh | bash

# Create and run an agent
forge init my-agent && cd my-agent && forge run

# Connect to Slack
forge run --with slack

See Quick Start for the full walkthrough, or Installation for all methods.

How It Works

SKILL.md --> Parse --> Discover tools/requirements --> Compile AgentSpec
                                                            |
                                                            v
                                                    Apply security policy
                                                            |
                                                            v
                                                    Run LLM agent loop
                                               (tool calling + memory + cron)

You write a SKILL.md. Forge compiles it into a secure, runnable agent with egress controls, encrypted secrets, and audit logging.

Key Features

Feature	Description
Atomic Skills	`SKILL.md`-based agent definitions with YAML frontmatter
Egress Security	Runtime + build-time domain allowlists with subprocess proxy
Channel Connectors	Slack (Socket Mode), Telegram (polling) — outbound-only
Cron Scheduling	Recurring tasks with channel delivery
Memory	Session persistence + long-term vector search
LLM Fallbacks	Multi-provider with automatic failover
Web Dashboard	`forge ui` for browser-based agent management
Build Signing	Ed25519 artifact signing & verification
Air-Gap Ready	Runs with local models, no cloud required

Documentation

Getting Started

Document	Description
Quick Start	Get an agent running in 60 seconds
Installation	Homebrew, binary, and Windows install
Architecture	System design, module layout, and data flows

Core Concepts

Document	Description
Skills	Skill definitions, registry, and compilation
Tools	Built-in tools, adapters, and custom tools
Runtime	LLM providers, fallback chains, running modes
Memory	Session persistence and long-term memory
Channels	Slack and Telegram adapter setup
Scheduling	Cron configuration and schedule tools

Security

Document	Description
Security Overview	Complete security architecture
Egress Security	Egress enforcement deep dive
Secrets	Encrypted secret management
Build Signing	Ed25519 signing and verification
Guardrails	Content filtering and PII detection

Operations

Document	Description
Commands	Full CLI reference
Configuration	`forge.yaml` schema and environment variables
Dashboard	Web UI features and architecture
Deployment	Container packaging, Kubernetes, air-gap
Hooks	Agent loop hook system
Plugins	Framework plugin system
Command Integration	Initializ Command platform guide

Philosophy

Running agents that do real work requires atomicity (explicit skills, defined tools, declared dependencies), security (restricted egress, encrypted secrets, audit trails), and portability (runs locally, in containers, in Kubernetes, in cloud — same agent, anywhere).

Real agent systems require atomicity, security, and portability. Forge provides those building blocks.

Contributing

We welcome contributions! See CONTRIBUTING.md for development setup, how to add skills/tools/channels, and the PR process.

Please read our Code of Conduct before participating.

License

See LICENSE for details.