OpenAI configuration

The bridge is configured entirely by environment variables (a .env file works with node --env-file=.env). Numeric variables fail loudly at startup if set to a non-number, so a typo stops the process with a clear message rather than silently misbehaving - the same goes for a bad OPENAI_VAD value or malformed OPENAI_MCP_SERVERS JSON.

Required

Variable	Meaning
`OPENAI_API_KEY`	Server-side OpenAI key with Realtime access. Never sent to the Teams side; opens the per-call Realtime session and synthesizes the goodbye.
`WORKER_SHARED_SECRET`	Must equal the shared secret from StandIn pairing. Both sides sign the WebSocket upgrade with it; a mismatch is rejected with `401`.

The agent

There is no dashboard - these variables define the agent:

Variable	Default	Meaning
`OPENAI_REALTIME_MODEL`	`gpt-realtime`	The Realtime model each per-call session runs.
`OPENAI_VOICE`	model default	Output voice (e.g. `marin`, `cedar`, `alloy`).
`OPENAI_INSTRUCTIONS`	a built-in default	Base system instructions. The bridge appends per-call caller context (name, tenant, direction) automatically.
`OPENAI_FIRST_MESSAGE`	(unset)	Deterministic opening line the agent speaks as its first response - also the natural place for a spoken AI disclosure.
`OPENAI_VAD`	`server_vad`	Turn detection: `server_vad` (volume-based) or `semantic_vad` (the model decides when the caller’s turn is over).

Common options

Variable	Default	Meaning
`PORT`	`9442`	Port the media WebSocket listens on.
`BIND`	`0.0.0.0`	Bind address.
`MAX_CALL_MINUTES`	`0` (off)	Bridge-side hard cap per call. On expiry the agent speaks a goodbye, then the call ends. Keep it below 60: the Realtime API caps sessions at 60 minutes server-side, and a call reaching that ceiling drops abruptly instead of saying goodbye.
`OPENAI_TTS_VOICE`	(unset)	With a voice set, the time-limit goodbye is spoken as the exact `GOODBYE_TEXT` via the standalone TTS endpoint. Without it, the agent is asked to say goodbye (wording may vary).
`GOODBYE_TEXT`	a default line	The goodbye the governor speaks.

Vision (the `look` tool)

The look tool is registered automatically - nothing to define on the OpenAI side. The bridge answers it two ways:

Variable	Meaning
`VISION_API_URL`	Any OpenAI-compatible chat-completions endpoint with image input. When set, the bridge describes the frame and returns the text (the raw frame never leaves the bridge).
`VISION_API_KEY`	Bearer key for that endpoint (optional for local models).
`VISION_MODEL`	Model name for the vision endpoint.

Without a vision endpoint, look falls back to attaching the frame to the Realtime conversation as native image input (gpt-realtime is multimodal), which is only allowed when Teams recording is active. For a fully custom vision hook in code, see the library API.

Custom tools and MCP servers

Variable	Meaning
`OPENAI_MCP_SERVERS`	JSON array of remote MCP tool entries (`{"server_label", "server_url", "allowed_tools"?, "authorization"?}`) the Realtime API executes server-side - the bridge does nothing at call time. `server_url` must be https. `require_approval` defaults to `"never"` (a voice call has no approval UI), so scope servers with `allowed_tools`.

Function tools your own code executes (lookup_order, transfer_call, …) are registered programmatically - see Extending the agent’s tools and the example.

Advanced

OPENAI_TRANSCRIPTION_MODEL (unset; needed for user-side transcript logging), OPENAI_TTS_MODEL (gpt-4o-mini-tts), OPENAI_HOST (api.openai.com, restricted to *.openai.com so the key cannot be exfiltrated elsewhere), HMAC_FRESHNESS_MS (default 60000), MAX_CONNECTIONS (64), MAX_CONNECTIONS_PER_IP (= total cap), PRE_START_TIMEOUT_MS (10000), WORKER_IDLE_TIMEOUT_MS (90000), TLS_CERT_PATH / TLS_KEY_PATH (native wss://), LOG_LEVEL (info), and LOG_TRANSCRIPTS (false; still gated on Teams recording being active). Full reference: configuration-reference.

Privacy

Caller audio, transcripts, any vision content, and MCP tool traffic transit OpenAI’s cloud and are retained per your organization’s OpenAI data controls. Keep LOG_TRANSCRIPTS off and vision unconfigured if not needed, and disclose the AI on the call via OPENAI_FIRST_MESSAGE. See Governors and privacy.

Getting Started

Teams setup

Concepts

OpenClaw plugin

Hermes plugin

ElevenLabs bridge

LiveKit bridge

Required

The agent

Common options

Vision (the `look` tool)

Custom tools and MCP servers

Advanced

Privacy

Links

Docs site

Installation

Source

​Required

​The agent

​Common options

​Vision (the look tool)

​Custom tools and MCP servers

​Advanced

​Privacy

​Links

Docs site

Installation

Source

Required

The agent

Common options

Vision (the `look` tool)

Custom tools and MCP servers

Advanced

Privacy

Links