The Clawdbot / Moltbot / OpenClaw Fiasco (Week 3): what changed, what it means, what to watch

Update to: The Clawdbot / Moltbot / OpenClaw Fiasco – Part 2

OpenClaw’s creator, Peter Steinberger, is joining OpenAI. OpenAI leadership has publicly framed this as a major push toward “personal agents” (AI that can do tasks, not just chat). Reporting also indicates OpenClaw will continue as open source while being placed under an independent foundation structure with OpenAI support (funding, infrastructure, and long-term backing).

That’s the headline: same project, new gravity. OpenClaw is no longer “a viral side project with a chaotic ecosystem.” It’s becoming something OpenAI wants to see endure—while OpenAI gets the talent and the momentum behind it.

Current status of OpenClaw right now

OpenClaw is actively releasing updates. The GitHub releases show frequent shipping and continued work on integrations and controls.

The security story is still the main concern for home users

OpenClaw’s “skills” ecosystem (extensions people can publish) has been widely criticized as a risk area—because malicious skills can trick users into exposing secrets or running harmful commands. Multiple recent reports describe real security problems in the ecosystem and the kinds of credentials targeted (API keys, tokens, crypto wallet secrets, etc.).

Translation for normal people: if a tool can connect to your accounts and “do things for you,” then a bad plugin can also do things to you.

The “OpenAI connection” changes expectations

Even if OpenClaw remains open-source under a foundation, OpenAI’s support raises the likelihood of:

• more formal governance,
• faster security hardening,
• better scanning / auditing practices,
• clearer rules about what gets distributed through official channels.

But it also raises questions about influence: open source can stay open while still drifting toward the priorities of its biggest sponsor.

Does OpenAI now “control” OpenClaw?

Based on current reporting, the more accurate framing is:

• OpenAI hired the founder
• OpenClaw is expected to live under a foundation and remain open source, with OpenAI support

So: OpenAI may not “own” it in the traditional sense, but it will likely have major influence through funding, infrastructure, and the founder now being on the inside.

What this likely means for OpenClaw (simple projections)

These are reasonable “if/then” expectations based on how open-source projects behave when a major player becomes the anchor sponsor:

Expect 1: A more “official” OpenClaw distribution

If OpenAI wants consumer trust, they’ll push for a safer “default path”:

• fewer sketchy extensions,
• signed/verified packages,
• safer permission prompts,
• stronger “you are about to expose keys” warnings.

This aligns with the public pressure OpenClaw has already faced around malicious skills

Expect 2: Faster security cleanup (but not instant safety)

OpenAI has deep security expertise and incentives to avoid a public mess. Still, agent tools are risky by design: they connect to your email, files, browser sessions, and accounts. Hardening helps, but doesn’t remove the core danger of giving automation broad access.

Expect 3: The ecosystem may split into “official” and “wild”

• an official store / curated skill set emerges,
• a community “anything goes” ecosystem still exists,
• users get confused and end up in the risky one anyway.

What this likely means for OpenAI (simple projections)

A faster path to “agents that actually work”

OpenAI has been pushing toward agents. Hiring the person behind a viral agent platform is a shortcut: it brings real-world learnings, developer momentum, and a community that already ships.

A trust and safety test, in public

If OpenAI becomes closely associated with OpenClaw, then every OpenClaw incident becomes reputational risk. That creates pressure for OpenAI to:

• formalize governance,
• tighten distribution,
• publish clearer security guidance for non-technical users.

A competitive signal

Multiple outlets frame this as a move in a widening “agent race.” Even if you don’t care about industry drama, the implication is: agents are moving from experiment to mainstream product category—which usually means more polish and more scams targeting normal users.

What home users should do

Wait for a clearer “official” distribution, clearer guardrails, and a calmer extension ecosystem—especially if you’d be connecting email, cloud drives, passwords, or crypto wallets. The recent security reporting is not theoretical.

If you already use it anyway

• Don’t give it your primary email account.
• Don’t paste API keys or long-lived tokens into random skills.
• Treat third-party skills like browser extensions: most are fine, some are poison, and it’s hard to tell which.

Alternatives to OpenClaw

“Alternatives” fall into three buckets. For a home consumer, the safest options are usually the ones that don’t require downloading random skills.

Safer “build your own assistant” approaches (more controlled)

Some guides recommend building a narrower assistant with fewer third-party components to reduce risk (less convenient, but safer).

Workflow automation tools (less magical, more predictable)

Tools like general automation platforms can cover common tasks (notifications, file moves, simple workflows) without giving an agent full device control. (Many “OpenClaw alternatives” lists include this category.)

Other agent frameworks and coding agents

A lot of “competitors” are aimed at developers or teams and may not be simpler than OpenClaw—just different tradeoffs.