AI Agents

DeepSeek V4 OpenClaw vs Hermes: My Honest Take

Julian Goldie — founder, AI Profit Boardroom
By Julian Goldie · 6 min read
Get The AI Profit Stack Join AIPB →
🎯 1,000+ done-for-you AI agent workflows 📅 4 live coaching calls every week 🛡️ 7-day refund + 30-day ROI guarantee 👥 3,400+ AI operators inside

DeepSeek V4 OpenClaw or Hermes — which one should you actually use?

I've been running both with the free DeepSeek V4 Flash model for a couple of weeks now.

They look similar on paper.

They are NOT similar in practice.

This is the breakdown.

Spoiler: I run both.

But for very different jobs.

If you skim nothing else, take this away — the harness matters more than the model.

Why The Harness Question Matters

DeepSeek V4 Flash on its own is a chat model.

Stick it in chat.deepseek.com and it's fine.

Not agentic though.

The harness — OpenClaw or Hermes or anything else — is what wraps the model in browser tools, web search, file access and scheduled execution.

Same model in two harnesses gives you two completely different products.

I covered this principle in my previous OpenClaw vs Hermes test but DeepSeek V4 OpenClaw deserves its own write-up because the model changes the calculus.

The Setup For Both

Identical foundation.

  1. Install or update Ollama via curl from ollama.com
  2. Pull DeepSeek V4 Flash from ollama.com/models — it's a cloud model, no download
  3. Spin up either OpenClaw or Hermes
  4. Point it at Ollama
  5. Pick V4 Flash

Same five steps.

Same free model.

Different harness on top.

If you're new to V4 entirely, start with my DeepSeek V4 tutorial for the basics.

DeepSeek V4 OpenClaw — Strengths

Browser automation.

This is OpenClaw's home turf.

I told it "go and speak to ChatGPT" and the browser opened, ChatGPT loaded, it started chatting.

Instant.

Web search.

Way better than raw DeepSeek in terminal which is rubbish at search.

OpenClaw routes the search properly.

Building tools agentically.

OpenClaw will plan, code, test, iterate inside the browser.

Hermes can do this but it's not its sweet spot.

Easiest Ollama setup.

Genuinely.

Of every harness I've tested with Ollama, OpenClaw is the smoothest to wire up.

DeepSeek V4 OpenClaw — Weaknesses

Reliability is ~50/50.

Sometimes it nails the task on the first prompt.

Sometimes it fumbles three times before getting there.

You learn to re-run prompts.

Not great for background scheduled work.

OpenClaw wants you in the browser tab clicking around.

It's not really designed to fire and forget.

Hermes With DeepSeek V4 — Strengths

Smooth.

That's the word I keep coming back to.

Hermes just works.

Scheduled agents.

This is where Hermes destroys OpenClaw.

You set up an agent to run every morning at 7am, pull a report, summarise it, drop it in your inbox — done, no babysitting.

I've got several of these going.

Full Hermes scheduled-agent setup here.

Better terminal UI.

OpenClaw lives in the browser.

Hermes lives in the terminal with a much cleaner interface.

Personal preference but I find it easier to monitor multiple agents.

Hermes With DeepSeek V4 — Weaknesses

Less powerful per task.

When OpenClaw works, it does more in one shot than Hermes.

Hermes is reliable but it's not flexing as hard.

Browser automation is weaker.

Hermes can do web work but OpenClaw does it better.

If your task is browser-heavy, OpenClaw wins.

DeepSeek V4 OpenClaw vs Hermes — The Decision Matrix

I'll keep this practical.

Pick DeepSeek V4 OpenClaw if you need:

Pick Hermes if you need:

Pick BOTH if you're serious.

Multi-tab terminal.

Cmd+T.

OpenClaw in tab one for interactive work.

Hermes in tab two firing scheduled jobs.

5x productivity.

Want my exact harness combo for free agentic work? Inside the AI Profit Boardroom, I've got a full agentic harness section showing you the exact OpenClaw and Hermes setups, when to use which, and the prompts that actually deliver results with DeepSeek V4 Flash. Plus weekly coaching calls. 3,000+ members are already using this stack. → Get inside the Boardroom

What About Open Code, Codex, And Raw DeepSeek?

Quick honourable mentions from my testing.

Open Code — best for pure coding tasks like building a blog page.

Codex — built me a ping pong game in one prompt, good for small contained projects.

Raw DeepSeek in terminal — chat only.

Not really agentic.

If you only run V4 Flash via the chat interface you're missing 90% of what it can do.

That's the lesson — the API is fine, the harness is everything.

A Realistic Day With DeepSeek V4 OpenClaw + Hermes

Here's how a working day looks for me.

7am: Hermes fires scheduled agents — pull yesterday's analytics, draft a content idea, queue an outreach list.

9am: I open OpenClaw — need to research three competitors, OpenClaw browses them and summarises.

11am: Build a quick SEO tool inside OpenClaw — agentic tool building for the win.

2pm: Hermes fires another scheduled job — daily blog brief.

4pm: OpenClaw browser session — outreach research, log into LinkedIn, gather context.

All using one model.

DeepSeek V4 Flash.

Free.

FAQs About DeepSeek V4 OpenClaw vs Hermes

Is DeepSeek V4 OpenClaw or Hermes more powerful?

OpenClaw is more powerful per task.

Hermes is more reliable per task.

Different definitions of "better".

Can I run DeepSeek V4 OpenClaw and Hermes at the same time?

Yes — both connect to the same Ollama gateway.

Just open them in different terminal tabs.

Which is easier to set up?

OpenClaw — by a margin.

It's the smoothest Ollama harness I've installed.

Does Hermes do browser automation with DeepSeek V4?

Some, but not as well as OpenClaw.

Use OpenClaw for browser-heavy work.

Will I burn through Ollama free tier running both?

Possibly if you're hammering them 12 hours a day.

For solo work it's fine.

Should I just use Claude Code instead?

If you've got the budget and want zero faff, yes.

If you want free agentic AI, DeepSeek V4 OpenClaw + Hermes is the play.

Related Reading

Video notes + links to the tools 👉 grab them in the Boardroom.

Learn how I make these videos 👉 aiprofitboardroom.com.

Get a FREE AI Course + Community + 1,000 AI Agents 👉 join free here.

The honest answer to OpenClaw vs Hermes is run both — but if you're picking one to start with, make it DeepSeek V4 OpenClaw.

What members say about the AI Profit Boardroom

Read all 114 reviews on Skool →

★ 4.9 out of 5 from 114 member reviews on Skool

Yosuke Sato, AI Profit Boardroom member review (5 stars, paying member for 17 months): The best Skool course you get for AI! I have attended a few Skool courses before, but AI Profit Boardroom is the most active community and has great support from the management team, including Julian! You can get the most up-to-date information and practical implementations in this community. I highly recommend this!Mazzie T, AI Profit Boardroom member review (5 stars, paying member for 10 months): My mind is blown everyday with all the content and the incredible information. So much support and I love the personalised attention and quick responses. The community is great and people are very responsive and helpful.Rene Clayton, AI Profit Boardroom member review (5 stars, paying member for 9 months): The AI Profit Boardroom is a GAME CHANGER people. I could not be more thrilled that I joined!! So much support, more information than you can even consume, a huge value for what the small fee was. I have grown my business, my knowledge and my FUN!. SUCH a fantastic leader and group of humans. I am incredibly honored to be a part of this fantastic group of intelligent humans :-) THANK YOU!Arpiet Malpani, AI Profit Boardroom member review (5 stars, paying member for 8 months): Incredible learning from Julian and team. I started out in march and was able to build end to end SAAS with the help and learning from this group. I am incredibly thankful to Julian for crazy support and prompt response.James Grimm, AI Profit Boardroom member review (5 stars, paying member for 7 months): I asked Julian for help finding local business websites with little to no traffic. Julian was gracious in providing me my personal "how-to" video instruction. Wow, this is the pinnacle of customer service! I am just one of 3,400 subscribers and Julian took the time to help me personally. Thank you Julian for your assistance and outstanding custoemr support and care. James (Jim) GrimmNick Good, AI Profit Boardroom member review (5 stars, paying member for 4 months): I’m part of many AI groups and hands down, what Julian Goldie, has built here…the classroom trainings are amazing, but the community he has created is second to none (the community is worth the cost of joining!). If you’re looking to become the AI expert and build/create something meaningful, then AI Profit Boardroom is for YOU!Steven Gray, AI Profit Boardroom member review (5 stars, paying member for 4 months): Been in awhile. I’m a dad on a factory shift, not a tech bloke. Julian’s lot showed me how to use AI without drowning in tools. Avatar, voice, the workflow thinking — that’s what I needed. If you’re stuck on “where do I start,” this group’s worth it. I always read them.Steve Erickson, AI Profit Boardroom member review (5 stars, paying member for 4 months): I asked Julian a simple question, and he ended up creating a 10-minute video and a guide breaking down in extreme detail what I had asked. Amazing response!Rod Martin, AI Profit Boardroom member review (5 stars, paying member for 3 months): Julian is brilliant, and more prolific than I can keep up with (which is a great thing). His AgentOS is remarkable, and he is THE go-to guy for what you can really do (and not do) with the ever-increasing deluge of new AI upgrades and tools. HIGHLY recommend.Daniel Shulman, AI Profit Boardroom member review (5 stars, paying member for 4 months): Julian is very helpful. He doesn't try sell stuff you dont need and will give you a straight answer to your questions.Rj Herzog, AI Profit Boardroom member review (5 stars, paying member for 5 months): Top notch. If you are searching & searching thinking there is always something better out there.... You just found it. No need to look any further. Goldie covers it all & is super helpful. Can't beat the group either. Really can't recommend this group enough.Jermey Matthews, AI Profit Boardroom member review (5 stars, paying member for 6 months): While he has the capacity to do it, Julian is definitely doing the unscalable things to support his community.
AI Agents

My First Hour With Hermes GPT 6 (Real Walkthrough)

Hermes GPT 6 first-run walkthrough: install, pick the model, first voice command, first build. Exactly what happens in the first hour, including the bits that broke.

 AI Agents

Hermes Agentic Operating System Explained (2026)

What is the Hermes Agentic Operating System? It runs your AI agents on one dashboard with shared memory to automate real work. Here's how it works and how to get it.

 AI Agents

Why I Run Hermes Desktop Mac For Daily Automation

Hermes desktop Mac turns one task you hate into a scheduled agent. Memory, skills, smart home, scheduled runs. The automation patterns I actually use on Mac.

Ready To Join The #1 AI Community?

Join 3,400+ entrepreneurs inside the AI Profit Boardroom. Get the Agent OS, 1,000+ plug-and-play AI agent workflows, daily Q&A with Julian and 4 live coaching calls every week.

Join The AI Profit Boardroom →

7-Day No-Questions Refund • 30-Day ROI Guarantee

Found this useful? Get more of this site in your Google.

One tap adds us as a preferred source — Google then shows you our posts more often in Search, Top Stories, and AI Overviews.

Or add us in your Google settings →

← Back to all posts