How to Build Your First Crypto AI Agent with ElizaOS (Developer Guide)

This tutorial walks you through building a production-ready crypto AI agent using ElizaOS in under 4 hours. You'll set up the development environment, integrate Ethereum and Solana blockchain connectors, implement a simple token-swapping plugin, add conversational memory, and deploy your agent. By the end, you'll have an agent capable of executing blockchain transactions autonomously, responding to user queries via Telegram, and managing a crypto wallet. Prerequisites: Node.js 18+, basic TypeScript knowledge, and a test wallet with USDC on Ethereum testnet.

Prerequisites & Environment Setup

System Requirements:

• OS: macOS, Linux, or Windows (WSL2)
• Node.js: Version 18+
• Package Manager: Yarn or npm
• Text Editor: VS Code recommended
• Git: For cloning ElizaOS

Create Test Accounts:

1. Ethereum Testnet Wallet: Use MetaMask or ethers.js
2. Telegram Bot Token: Create via @BotFather
3. OpenAI API Key: Get from platform.openai.com

Step 1: Clone and Install ElizaOS

bashCopy
1git clone https://github.com/elizaOS/eliza
2cd eliza
3yarn install
4yarn build

Step 2: Create Your Agent Directory

bashCopy
1mkdir my-crypto-agent
2cd my-crypto-agent
3yarn init -y
4yarn add @elizaos/core @elizaos/client-telegram @elizaos/plugin-evm
5yarn add dotenv typescript ts-node

Step 3: Configure Environment Variables

Create .env file:

bashCopy
1OPENAI_API_KEY=sk-xxxxxxxxxxxxx
2MODEL=gpt-4-turbo
3ETHEREUM_RPC_URL=https://goerli.infura.io/v3/YOUR_KEY
4SOLANA_RPC_URL=https://api.devnet.solana.com
5PRIVATE_KEY=0xxxxxxxxxxxxx
6WALLET_ADDRESS=0xxx...
7TELEGRAM_BOT_TOKEN=123456789:ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZabcdefgh
8TELEGRAM_CHAT_ID=987654321
9AGENT_NAME=MyTradingBot

Step 4: Create Agent Configuration

Create agent.ts with ElizaOS config: name, description, systemPrompt, model, memory, plugins, connectors.

Step 5: Implement Token Swap Plugin

Create plugins/swapPlugin.ts with Uniswap V3 Router integration. Handle token swaps via smart contracts.

Step 6: Initialize and Run Agent

Create main.ts that instantiates Agent, loads plugins, and starts listening for Telegram messages.

Step 7: Build and Run

bashCopy
1yarn tsc --init
2node --loader ts-node/esm main.ts

Step 8: Interact with Your Agent

Message your Telegram bot:

• "What's my wallet balance?"
• "Swap 100 USDC for ETH"

Agent responds with data and executes transactions.

Step 9: Production Deployment

Option A: Vercel (Serverless)

• Deploy for $0-20/month

Option B: Docker (Self-Hosted)

• Build container and run on VPS

Key Safeguards for Production

Transaction Limits: Set MAX_SINGLE_SWAP to prevent unauthorized large transactions.

Slippage Protection: Allow 2% slippage but validate expected output.

Rate Limiting: Limit to 10 requests per minute.

FAQ

Q: Can I run multiple agents? A: Yes. Create separate agent instances with different wallet addresses and Telegram bots.

Q: How do I add Solana support? A: Install @elizaos/plugin-solana and add it to agentConfig.plugins.

Q: What's the cheapest way to run an agent 24/7? A: Vercel free tier (~$0/month). For higher volume, rent VPS ($5-10/month).

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