In a strategic move towards enhancing its artificial intelligence offerings, OpenAI announced the hiring of Peter Steinberger on February 15, 2026. Steinberger, the brilliant mind behind the open-source AI agent OpenClaw, is set to lead initiatives that will further integrate AI capabilities into everyday tasks.
OpenAI’s decision to onboard Steinberger underscores its commitment to developing AI agents capable of autonomously managing real-world functions. The announcement, shared by CEO Sam Altman on social media platform X, coincides with a momentous shift for OpenClaw.
Notably, OpenClaw will remain an open-source project managed by an independent foundation while continuing to receive support from OpenAI. This ensures that the foundational principles of transparency and accessibility will persist. Steinberger emphasized that maintaining OpenClaw’s open-source status is a top priority, allowing the community to benefit from ongoing innovations.
Since its launch in November 2025, OpenClaw has rapidly gained traction, amassing over 180,000 stars on GitHub within a few months. Its ability to autonomously handle a myriad of tasks—ranging from managing emails to checking in for flights—has captivated users and developers alike.
Operating seamlessly on personal devices, OpenClaw integrates effortlessly with popular messaging platforms such as WhatsApp, Telegram, Slack, and Discord, enabling users to engage with the AI agent directly through their preferred applications.
Innovative Features and Challenges
The technological backbone of OpenClaw relies on large language models from industry pioneers like Anthropic and OpenAI. One of its standout features, the “heartbeat” function, empowers the agent to operate proactively rather than simply awaiting user instructions.
However, the journey has not been without its challenges. Steinberger revealed that OpenClaw faced significant operational expenses, ranging between $10,000 and $20,000 monthly, along with various security issues and trademark disputes. These complications included hackers hijacking accounts and packages during a trademark fight, prompting Steinberger to implement swift security measures to safeguard the project.
Interestingly, Steinberger received tempting acquisition offers from both OpenAI and Meta, with Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg personally reaching out via WhatsApp to discuss potential integration of OpenClaw into their ecosystem.
Emerging Competition
<pOn the same day as Steinberger's announcement, another player entered the scene: Moonshot AI launched Kimi Claw, a new browser-based iteration of OpenClaw's framework. Kimi Claw operates on Moonshot's Kimi K2.5 model and promises a host of features, including 40GB of cloud storage and access to over 5,000 community skills, along with round-the-clock agent functionality.
This cloud-hosted approach eliminates the need for local software setups like Docker, although the Chinese-hosted nature of the service raises concerns regarding data privacy among users.
The response to Steinberger’s transition has been mixed within the developer community. While many celebrate the validation of AI agent technology, others express apprehension about the potential for corporate influence over what has traditionally been a community-driven project. Some users have coined the term “Closedclaw” to voice their concerns regarding the project’s future direction.
Despite these concerns, OpenAI’s ongoing support for OpenClaw’s development under an independent foundation model offers a reassuring prospect for both users and contributors. Although the financial terms surrounding Steinberger’s hiring remain undisclosed, his expertise signifies a promising future for AI agents that are poised to revolutionize how we interact with technology.
