If ChatGPT's launch in 2022 marked the beginning of mainstream conversational AI, OpenClaw's viral debut this year may represent the inflection point for autonomous agents. It makes sense, then, that OpenClaw founder Peter Steinberger is joining ChatGPT maker OpenAI in a deal that guarantees the open-source AI assistant stays independent.
It's a partnership that could define the year and potentially the next phase of AI.
Steinberger posted on X on Sunday that he would be joining OpenAI to focus on bringing AI agents to a broad audience. At the same time, he said the OpenClaw project would transition to a foundation, remaining open and independent rather than a traditional startup.
The move follows weeks of mounting speculation around one of the most talked-about AI projects of 2026 so far. Steinberger hinted at his thinking during a recent appearance on the Lex Fridman Podcast, where he revealed that investors had been eager to fund OpenClaw as a standalone company. He suggested that partnering with a major AI lab -- like OpenAI or Meta -- could offer a faster route to global scale, provided the project's open-source roots were preserved.
Ultimately, that led to Steinberger joining OpenAI.
"Yes, I could totally see how OpenClaw could become a huge company. And no, it's not really exciting for me," Steinberger wrote in a recent blog post. "What I want is to change the world, not build a large company and teaming up with OpenAI is the fastest way to bring this to everyone."
(Disclosure: Ziff Davis, CNET's parent company, in 2025 filed a lawsuit against OpenAI, alleging it infringed Ziff Davis copyrights in training and operating its AI systems.)
What is the deal with OpenClaw?
OpenClaw, previously known as Clawdbot and Moltbot, evolved rapidly from a niche experiment into a cultural and technical phenomenon. As I reported earlier this month, its appeal lies in its independence and autonomy. Unlike many AI tools that require prompts and supervision, OpenClaw can be configured to pursue tasks on your behalf, learning preferences over time and suggesting actions proactively.
One of its defining breakthroughs is that it is surprisingly simple to use. You can just message OpenClaw through platforms such as iMessage, WhatsApp or Slack, and have it execute tasks even when you are away from your computers. That frictionless interface has made the idea of a "personal agent" feel more tangible than ever.
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