Update February 2, 2026: Moltbot is now called OpenClaw. The project was previously known as Clawdbot, then Moltbot, and was renamed OpenClaw following branding and legal considerations. Despite the name change, it refers to the same local, open-source AI agent.
For a current, OpenClaw-focused overview, see What is OpenClaw?
Moltbot is an open-source personal AI agent that runs locally on your own computer and is designed to take real actions rather than just generate text. Instead of being a hosted chatbot, it acts more like a self-managed executive assistant that you control, with access to your files, apps, and workflows.
Once installed on macOS, Windows, Linux, or a small server, Moltbot can handle tasks such as managing email and calendars, moving files, running scripts, and triggering automations, all while maintaining persistent memory across interactions. You connect it to the AI model of your choice, whether cloud-based or local, and interact with it through familiar chat interfaces like Slack or Telegram.
Its strength is also its main tradeoff: because it can execute commands and access sensitive data, it requires careful setup, solid security practices, and technical comfort. In short, Moltbot is a powerful, self-hosted AI agent that can truly act on your behalf, offering maximum control at the cost of greater responsibility.
Moltbot vs OpenClaw: what changed?
Nothing about the underlying technology changed when Moltbot was renamed OpenClaw. The software, capabilities, and architecture remain the same. The name change was driven by branding and legal considerations, not by a new version or fork of the project.
In practice, Moltbot and OpenClaw refer to the same local, open-source AI agent. You may still see the project described as Moltbot in older articles, GitHub repositories, tutorials, or social media posts, while newer coverage increasingly uses the OpenClaw name.
If you are searching for Moltbot, OpenClaw, or Clawdbot, you are looking at the same tool under different names during different stages of its evolution. OpenClaw is simply the current name of the project formerly known as Moltbot.