Peter Steinberger, the developer behind the viral AI personal assistant OpenClaw, has joined OpenAI as the company accelerates its push into more advanced personal AI agents.
OpenClaw gained rapid attention in recent weeks after branding itself as “the AI that actually does things”. Unlike traditional chatbots, it was designed to carry out practical tasks such as managing calendars, booking flights and interacting across digital platforms. The tool even experimented with connecting to networks populated by other AI assistants, reinforcing its ambition to act independently on a user’s behalf.
The project’s rise was not without complications. Originally launched as Clawdbot, it was renamed after Anthropic reportedly raised concerns about similarities to its Claude chatbot. The assistant was later rebranded again as OpenClaw, with Steinberger saying he preferred the new name.
In a blog post announcing his decision to join OpenAI, the Austrian developer said that while he believed OpenClaw could have grown into a major standalone company, building a large business was not his primary motivation.
“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,” he wrote.
OpenAI chief executive Sam Altman confirmed the hire on X, saying Steinberger will help “drive the next generation of personal agents”. Altman added that OpenClaw itself will continue as an open source project under a foundation structure, with OpenAI providing ongoing support.
The move highlights OpenAI’s increasing focus on agent-style systems capable of performing real-world tasks autonomously. As competition intensifies in the race to build more capable AI assistants, Steinberger’s experience developing task-oriented tools could play a key role in shaping OpenAI’s next phase.
Author: Kieran Seymour