I’ve been watching solar installers struggle with the same problem for years: they’re drowning in quote requests, system monitoring alerts, and customer questions. Most come through email, but increasingly they’re arriving via WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, even SMS. A decent-sized installer might field 200+ enquiries a week, and the good ones respond within hours—not days.

Now there’s a new tool in the mix: AI agents that can handle these conversations across multiple channels simultaneously. Not chatbots that spit out canned responses, but systems that can actually pull pricing data, check stock levels, and escalate complex issues to humans when needed.

The platform getting the most attention is OpenClaw, an open-source AI agent framework with over 192,000 GitHub stars. It’s designed to run autonomous AI agents across Slack, Microsoft Teams, WhatsApp, Telegram, and Discord. For solar installers, that means one system handling customer conversations regardless of where they start.

What Solar Companies Are Actually Using This For

I spoke with three Brisbane solar installers using AI agent systems, and the use cases are pretty consistent:

Quote requests: Customer messages “I need a quote for a 10kW system in Ashgrove.” The agent can pull suburb-specific data, ask clarifying questions about roof type and shading, and either generate a ballpark estimate or schedule a site visit. One installer told me their agent handles about 60% of initial quote enquiries without human intervention.

System monitoring alerts: When an inverter throws an error or production drops unexpectedly, the system can message the customer directly via their preferred channel. “Hey, we noticed your system’s output dropped 40% today—there might be shading or a panel issue. Want us to schedule a check?” Proactive, not reactive.

Post-installation support: “Why isn’t my system producing power?” gets asked constantly. An AI agent can walk through basic troubleshooting—check the isolator, look for error codes, verify the meter—before creating a service ticket if needed.

The economics make sense for medium to large installers. OpenClaw has 3,984+ available skills through its ClawHub marketplace, which means you’re not building everything from scratch. But here’s where it gets complicated.

The Security Problem Nobody’s Talking About

A recent audit found that 36.82% of ClawHub skills have security flaws, with 341 confirmed malicious skills. There are over 30,000 exposed OpenClaw instances on the public internet, many with default credentials or poor access controls.

For a solar installer, that’s a real problem. These systems have access to customer data, pricing information, and installation schedules. A compromised agent could leak competitive intelligence or worse.

This is where managed services like Team400’s OpenClaw offering come in. They run Australian-hosted infrastructure with security hardening, pre-audited skills, and ongoing monitoring. It’s the difference between spinning up your own WordPress site versus using a managed host that handles backups, updates, and security patches.

Does It Actually Improve Customer Experience?

Here’s what I’ve observed: when it works well, customers don’t notice they’re talking to an agent. The conversation feels natural, questions get answered quickly, and handoffs to humans are smooth.

When it doesn’t work well, you get the classic AI failure modes: repetitive responses, inability to handle edge cases, or—worst—confidently wrong information. One installer told me their agent quoted a customer for a 15kW system when local network limits capped it at 10kW. That mistake cost them time and credibility.

The best implementations I’ve seen have clear escalation paths. If the AI can’t answer within three message exchanges, it loops in a human. Simple rule, but effective.

What About the Small Guys?

Most solar installers I know are small operations—two to ten people, maybe a dedicated admin person if they’re lucky. Can they realistically deploy AI agents?

The honest answer is: it depends. If you’re doing 50+ quotes a week and losing business because you can’t respond fast enough, then yeah, it’s worth investigating. Platforms like AI consultants Brisbane from Team400 can help right-size the implementation—maybe you start with just quote handling via WhatsApp, not a full omnichannel deployment.

But if you’re a two-person crew doing mostly word-of-mouth business, a well-configured Calendly link and a good email autoresponder will serve you better. AI agents aren’t a magic solution, they’re a tool for a specific scale problem.

The Near Future

I think we’ll see this technology become standard for mid-sized installers within 18 months. Not because it’s revolutionary, but because customers expect instant responses across whatever channel they prefer. Email-only businesses already feel dated—waiting 24 hours for a quote reply feels like an eternity now.

The installers who’ll succeed are the ones who figure out where AI adds value (repetitive queries, after-hours support, initial triage) and where humans are irreplaceable (complex site assessments, handling upset customers, building long-term relationships).

My 13.2kW system has been running for five years with minimal issues, but when I do need support, I want to talk to someone who actually understands solar, not an agent that’s 95% accurate. That’s the bar these systems need to clear.