OpenAI hired Peter Steinberger, the creator of the viral open-source artificial intelligence agent OpenClaw. CEO Sam Altman announced that Steinberger will lead the development of next-generation personal agents. These agents are expected to become a core product offering for the company.
OpenClaw gained popularity for autonomously executing tasks such as managing emails and booking flights. The tool operates by connecting large language models to messaging applications.
The OpenClaw project will move to an independent foundation and remain open-source despite previous security vulnerability concerns. OpenAI will provide continued financial support for the foundation.
This hiring positions OpenAI against rivals like Google and Meta as competition in agentic AI intensifies.