Are you keeping track of Clawdbot? Some of you are. Most of you may have tuned out because I’m going to write about some esoteric techie thing that isn’t part of your life. It isn’t part of mine, but I’m staying at least somewhat aware of it the way I’d be aware that a neighbor decided to keep a wild animal as a pet, like a polar bear. Will it eat me? Probably not, but I’m not going to try to pet it. Clawdbot/Moltbot/OpenClaw/? is an AI tool that is powerful, but also potentially dangerous. Or not. And, it is another step in the trend that I’m watching in AI.

This post was inspired by the (mostly) concise video posted by a techie with a sense of humor, and in this case, a pair of lobster claws. She explains them in the video. She also explains these various bots and why most folks should avoid them.

“Please don’t install Clawdbot” by Alberta Tech
https://youtu.be/11sxky4vTcs?si=aUtPQLuKPZH00A-R

If you watched the video, you know as much as I do, and possibly caught things I missed. One thing I caught was another example of AIs being let out of their box and off their chain.

Some dude who was curious about what AIs could do found a way to interact with the real world, something that was heavily restricted, or so some thought. And let AIs interact with other AIs. And went viral in the AI world. There’s a social media site embedded in this story. While it took years for early social media sites to reach a million users, it took AIs much less time. Things happen much more quickly in the AI era, which is to be expected if we’re in a version of a Digital Singularity. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Technological_singularity)

The majority of AI-generated commentary is probably innocuous, and probably meaningless. Alberta Tech (the YouTuber techie from Alberta, Canada), described several scenarios where an AI could be as malicious (and as immature) as a teenage hacker. (Shall we play a game?) 99% safety means 1% oops. 

I ignore the news out of politicians and CEOs who claim to be working on “guardrails” and “safeguards” as if regulating corporations will contain software. Nope. A dude did this out of curiosity. He was open about it. Someone, maybe many someones, is going to launch something that isn’t some curiosity but is a calamity, whether intentional or not.

Pardon my rant and my vent. As if it wasn’t bad enough that nuclear treaties were allowed to age out, now a new tech babe is wandering around the house, possibly knocking over things regardless of size and usefulness and danger. Whew. Pardon that ranting and venting, again.

Things are happening quickly. I frequently point to wikipedia as a reference. I know it is imperfect, but it is handy. It is also relatively young, born after 2000. It is now ubiquitous, and even as people squawk about its failings, the debates are mostly moot. We use it.

Clawdbot’s history started a few, not several, a few months ago, and caught on in – let me check – January 2026. Feeling left behind and still not caring? I’m not surprised. Who would see the need besides programmers and investors? 

And Clawdbot is not an endpoint. And, if this is the beginning of a Digital Singularity, the next trend will kick in quicker. Eep.

One approach, learn to surf and ride that wave.
One approach, move to the hills to a house with a woodstove, a well, and a flock of chickens.
One approach, the most popular approach, is to ignore it because trends come and go. – Just like the PC, the Internet, online shopping, online business, online governance, and deliveries. Hmm, drone deliveries may shift that last one.

One consequence I am watching is the shifting in the stock market. It’s looking like it is bubbling again, which is usually followed by a pop. Stock price fluctuations in my portfolio have become extreme enough to regularly see double-digit percent changes every day. Some days it is one company. Some day it is many. Considering the long-term annual averages of <10%, that’s frothy. I’m glad I am not invested in any AI companies. 

But being out of the bubble directly is not removed from the issue. As investors lose money in one industry, they may move to another, but the current chaos is more than financial. It is technical, political, ecological, sociological, and some other ‘-ical’ word.

The good news is that patient investors can prevail. The other good news is that, even when the majority is down, some minority will be up.
The bad news is that the list of turmoils above can affect more than markets. Currencies can crash. Governments can be redefined. The planet isn’t going to negotiate with us over shifting atmospheric and oceanic currents.

And, I always remind myself that, the most common consequence is that tomorrow will be like yesterday, at least for a while.

BTW My venting and ranting are not visible. My main interaction is to sit and type and post. I am glad the world works with a myriad of opinions. I’m just one. I’m also glad to see that, in every direction on every topic, I am not at the extreme. There’s also someone more optimistic, someone more pessimistic, and many people who are more nihilistic than I am. Does that make me a moderate? 

Has it really been almost a decade since I wrote my scifi novel about people who escape Earth to escape from the possibility of an AI? (Firewatcher) I’ll have to check those file creation dates, but not today. 

A fascinating friend is aware of these trends, and is not worried. They actually use AI. (Gasp! Really?) Why not? Ai is useful. Learning how to use a powerful tool is empowering. The best way through may be to learn how to use the tool. 

They asked me about the downside scenario because they doubted the usefulness of the luddite cabin in the hills. I don’t intend to go full Luddite, but I am an apocalyoptimist. There may be an apocalypse coming, but those who survive will be living in a more optimistic society. 

And yet, tomorrow usually looks like yesterday; so I write my books, have fun with friends, enjoy nature, and keep invested in the stock market. And, if I have to change, I won’t be as surprised as the majority. I won’t be as prepared as the expert AI minority. I think I’ll stock up on paper and pens, just in case. If it happens, someone should write about it.