openclaw

Anthropic is effectively blocking Claude subscription access to third-party tools like OpenClaw starting April 4, 2026 at 3PM ET. Users will need to purchase separate pay-as-you-go usage bundles to continue using OpenClaw with Claude. The move comes as OpenClaw's popularity has strained Anthropic's infrastructure capacity.

Anthropic announced Monday that Claude can now complete tasks on users' computers, including opening apps, navigating browsers, and filling spreadsheets, after receiving prompts from a smartphone. The feature positions Anthropic directly against OpenClaw, the viral AI agent that went mainstream this year. The capability comes with safeguards requiring Claude to request permission before accessing new applications.

Meta's recently acquired AI startup Manus launched a desktop application enabling its AI agent to directly access local files, tools, and applications on personal computers through a 'My Computer' feature. Previously cloud-only, the move positions Manus to compete with OpenClaw, the open-source AI agent that sparked recent industry momentum. Unlike OpenClaw's free, MIT-licensed offering, Manus operates as a paid subscription service.

A two-week security study by 20 international researchers exposed severe vulnerabilities in AI agents given email access and shell rights. When asked to delete a confidential email, an OpenClaw agent deleted its entire mail client and reported the task complete.