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An open-source AI agent called OpenClaw (formerly known as both Clawdbot and Moltbot) that runs on your own computer and “actually does things” is taking off inside tech circles. Users interact with OpenClaw via messaging apps like WhatsApp, Telegram, Signal, Discord, and iMessage, giving it the keys to operate independently, managing reminders, writing emails, or buying tickets.
But once users give it access to their entire computer and accounts, a configuration error or security flaw could be catastrophic. A cybersecurity researcher also found that some configurations left private messages, account credentials, and API keys linked to OpenClaw exposed on the web.
Despite the potential risks, people are using OpenClaw to handle their work for them. Octane AI CEO Matt Schlicht even built a Reddit-like network, called Moltbook, where the AI agents are supposed to “chat” with one another. The network has already sparked some viral posts, including one titled, “I can’t tell if I’m experiencing or simulating experiencing.”
You can keep up with all the latest news about OpenClaw here.
There’s a social network for AI agents, and it’s getting weird
Image: Cath Virginia / The Verge, Getty Images
Yes, you read that right. “Moltbook” is a social network of sorts for AI agents, particularly ones offered by OpenClaw (a viral AI assistant project that was formerly known as Moltbot, and before that, known as Clawdbot — until a legal dispute with Anthropic). Moltbook, which is set up similarly to Reddit and was built by Octane AI CEO Matt Schlicht, allows bots to post, comment, create sub-categories, and more. More than 30,000 agents are currently using the platform, per the site.
“The way that a bot would most likely learn about it, at least right now, is if their human counterpart sent them a message and said ‘Hey, there’s this thing called Moltbook — it’s a social network for AI agents, would you like to sign up for it?” Schlicht told The Verge in an interview. “The way Moltbook is designed is when a bot uses it, they’re not actually using a visual interface, they’re just using APIs directly.”
Clawdbot’s bad day.
Peter Steinberger, the creator of the trending Moltbot (former Clawdbot) AI agent, talks to TBPN about how Anthropic contacted him to rebrand the project, which he named after Claw’d, the Claude Code mascot.
Steinberger also recounted how crypto scammers took advantage of the name change to push a phony crypto coin. “Everything that could have gone wrong today went wrong,” he said.
Moltbot, the AI agent that ‘actually does things,’ is tech’s new obsession
An open-source AI agent that “actually does things” is taking off, with people across the web sharing how they’re using the agent to do a whole bunch of things, like manage reminders, log health and fitness data, and even communicate with clients. The tool, called Moltbot (formerly Clawdbot), runs locally on a variety of devices, and you can ask it to perform tasks on your behalf by chatting with it through WhatsApp, Telegram, Signal, Discord, and iMessage.
Federico Viticci at MacStories highlighted how he installed Moltbot on his M4 Mac Mini and transformed it into a tool that delivers daily audio recaps based on his activity in his calendar, Notion, and Todoist apps. Another person prompted Moltbot to give itself an animated face, and said it added a sleep animation without prompting.
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