Deploying OpenClaw: 16 Incidents, One Day, $1.50

A developer recounts a chaotic experience deploying OpenClaw, an open-source autonomous AI agent platform, on a VPS for a client who wanted a daily Hacker News digest delivered via Telegram. Despite a straightforward plan, the deployment resulted in 16 incidents in a single day, starting with the scheduled heartbeat system failing to trigger the digest task as expected. The entire project cost only $1.50 but delivered far more drama than anticipated.