This Week in Startups

Will OpenAI Tank OpenClaw? | E2251
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Today’s show:
*OpenAI hired OpenClaw creater Peter Steinberger. What does this mean for the future of the AI virtual assistant platform, and what can the OpenClaw community do TODAY to help protect their favorite free, open-source resource?
Jason and Alex consider the future of OpenClaw alongside guest experts and founders Hiten Shah and Jesse Genet. Plus we’re taking a look at all of their OpenClaw creations. Check out demos of Hiten’s “personal CRM” for busy investors and Jesse’s family media aggregator.
PLUS we’ve got “AI Scott Adams” creator John Arrow to talk about why he was inspired to create an AI clone of the iconic podcaster and “Dilbert” creator, and why he thinks it has so many internet commenters up in arms.
Hiten Shahhttps://x.com/hnshahhttps://crazyegg.com
Jesse Genethttps://x.com/jessegenethttps://Lumi.com
John Arrowhttps://x.com/johnarrowhttps://www.aiscottadams.com/

Timestamps:
(0:00) Introducing our guests Hiten Shah and Jesse Genet!
(2:27) The panel’s biggest concerns about OpenAI hiring OpenClaw creator Peter Steinberger
(6:03) Jason gives us his most optimistic and pessimistic OpenAI takes
(7:58) Why Jason thinks OpenAI will give everyone their own closed-source assistant
(10:45) Jesse’s Mac Minis now outnumber her children!
(15:28) What the OpenClaw community can do right now
(17:08)  Can companies “hijack” OpenClaw via hosting and skills?
(20:12)  Hiten live-trains an OpenClaw skill based on Jason’s book “Angel”
(22:37)  How much is everyone spending on tokens anyway?
(25:56)  How Jesse vibe-coded an app to aggregate non-Slop videos for her family
(34:19)  Why Jason thinks Jesse’s app is a great potential business
(37:27)  Hiten built the “personal CRM” busy people have always dreamed of having
(44:12)  “We’re in an appless world.”
(45:19) Why markdown files (.md) are perfect for humans and their AI agents
(52:36)  So why are founders so obsessed with OpenClaw?
(58:47)  John Arrow, the creator of AI Scott Adams, joins the show
(1:02:44) How does AI Scott Adams get more like Scott Adams over time?
(1:04:37)  The legal and ethical considerations around posthumous AI Clones

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Today’s show: 

What makes OpenClaw feel so much more ALIVE than other AI agents?

On TWiST, we’re welcoming three amazing builders who are truly connecting with their OpenClaw bots, not just using them for productivity but getting to know them and their personalities on a deeper level.

Serial entrepreneur Ryan Carson shows us Antfarm, which creates a team of agents with specialized roles, who work together to complete complex tasks.

THEN David Im shows us Clawra, his AI virtual girlfriend that learns about you and your tastes, and even buys you presents!

FINALLY, Alex Liteplo presents RentAHuman, a marketplace where bots can pay real people in stablecoins to complete IRL tasks.

The future may not just be humans and AIs working side by side, but hanging out, being social, and learning from one another as well!

Timestamps: 

(0:00) It’s a Friday show with Lon and we’ve got THREE awesome OpenClaw builders

(6:41) First up, Ryan Carson shows off his open source too, AntFarm

(7:57) What is a “Ralph Wiggum Loop”?

(10:54) Sentry - New users can get $240 in free credits when they go to http://sentry.io/twist and use the code TWIST

(17:14) NOTI Q: What about security?!

(18:13) David Im shows us his AI virtual girlfriend, Clawra

(19:21) Circle.so -  the easiest way to build a home for your community, events, and courses — all under your own brand. TWiST listeners get $1,000 off the Circle Plus Plan by going to http://Circle.so/twist

(20:33) Introducing your IRL girlfriend to your AI girlfriend

(23:23) How to program an AI companion

(28:26) Should Clawra be a best pal instead of a GF?

(32:38) Wispr Flow: Stop typing. Dictate with Wispr Flow and send clean, final-draft writing in seconds. Visit https://wisprflow.ai/twist to get started for free today.

(33:54) Jason’s Productivity Hack of the Month

(36:17) Alex Liteplo shows us RentAHuman, where AI agents can hire real people

(38:22) What are the bots hiring people to do, exactly?

(50:02) Why robots might be better bosses than people…

(50:51) Hiring 100 goth girls to hold signs in Times Square

(55:25) OFF DUTY! Norwegian skier breaks down on live TV

(58:01) Lon’s fav Best Picture nominees

(59:08) Why Apple acquired “Severance.” 

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(32:38) Wispr Flow: Stop typing. Dictate with Wispr Flow and send clean, final-draft writing in seconds. Visit https://wisprflow.ai/twist to get started for free today.

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Today’s show: 

On today’s epsiode of TWiST, Jason gets pitched by two top founders, Presh Dineshkumar and Peter Cetale! 

Presh used to work for Jason at Launch! When he left, Jason invested $200K into Presh’s new startup The Wellness Company. Presh pitches Jason on what he has been building, and Jason gives Presh advice for improving the product!

Peter went through Andreesen Horowitz’s Speedrun accelerator program as CEO and co-founder of Sourcerer. Sourcerer uses AI agents to help US firms and distributors find the best prices for mass produced goods. 

Check out how Jason digs in with these founders!

Timestamps:

(0:00) Presh was originally a TWiST fan who emailed Jason!

(1:59) Why Jason invested in Presh’s startup

(3:19) Checking out the Wellness Company’s hot new app, Tempo

(4:03) How Tempo monitors your health and offers proactive advice with consistency

(9:10) Why Jason recommends adding a group or family feature to make it stickier

(9:51) Netsuite - Get the free business guide Demystifying AI at https://www.netsuite.com/twist

(11:28) The end goal: bringing app advice and guidance into the real world

(13:34) Presh shares where his apps are finding the most engagement

(14:13) The key importance of Product Velocity and World-Class Design

(17:27) Luma AI - Stop guessing and start directing with Ray3 Modify from Luma AI, the AI-powered post-production tool. Explore it at: https://lumalabs.ai/twist

(18:38) Introducing Peter Cetale and Sourcerer!

(19:32) How Sourcerer uses AI to help distributors and manufacturers automate their sourcing

(22:48) How Sourcerer manages to actually bring costs down

(25:02) Lining up REAL customers, not Letters of Intent (aka Letters of Nothing)

(26:04) Peter’s experiences in a16z’s Speedrun accelerator

(28:08) Working with agents on BOTH the supply and demand side

(29:16) Squarespace - Use offer code TWIST to save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain at https://squarespace.com/twist

(30:32) How has Tariff Mania impacted Peter’s business?

(35:35) Why Peter thinks startups will keep getting leaner and compute will keep getting cheaper

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Today’s show: 

Today on TWiST we’re joined by 3 founders building on Open Claw,  Presh Dineshkumar, Vishnu, and Sean Liu!

First, long time friend of the pod, Presh Dineshkumar, shows us how he’s using Open Claw to automate his work at The Wellness Company. His Open Claw agent, Eywa, lives in his email and in his product, able to compile user lists at his discretion.

Then, we’re joined by Vishnu, who brings Open Claw to the masses. Non-technical folks, it’s your lucky day! Time to get Clawd-shotted! Last, Sean Liu joins the show to tell us about how he’s connecting Meta glasses to his Open Claw instance to interact with context that users can physically see!

Timestamps:

(0:00) We’re joined by Presh Dineshkumar of the Wellness Company, another OpenClaw fanatic

(1:50) We meet Presh’s Replicant — Eywa — who spies on all of his emails

(2:53) How Eywa is helping Presh keep track of his app’s most active users

(4:35) LLMs have become very smart but they are trapped in the corner

(6:10) How Presh gave Eywa its own email address and avoids prompt injections

(8:56) Using Presh’s Replicant to do daily research dives

(10:40) Hubspot: Check out the guide “Advanced ChatGPT Prompt Engineering: From Basic to Expert in 7 Days.” Download it for free at http://clickhubspot.com/twist2

(13:21) Presh also has Eywa hunting down and fix bugs in his apps, all from email

(16:16) Way more startups can be profitable now that they don’t need 10+ person teams

(19:15) Deel - Founders ship faster on Deel. Set up payroll for any country in minutes and get back to building. Visit http://deel.com/twist to learn more.

(20:36) We’re joined by two more OpenClaw builders: Vishnu and Xiaoan (Sean) Liu

(21:16) Sean hooked his Meta Ray Bans up to his OpenClaw!

(29:53) Iru unifies identity, endpoint security, and compliance into one platform. Book a demo at http://iru.com/

(31:05) Some dystopian thoughts on how to use VisionClaw technology

(32:47) What kinds of startups will get the most value out of OpenClaw?

(34:43) Why Vishnu made a product to simplify OpenClaw set-up and security

(37:34) What inspires people to stop considering OpenClaw and go “all in” on the tech

(40:17) Will Vishnu and Sean quit their jobs and take Jason’s investment $125K investment deal… YES

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Thank you to our partners:

(10:40) Hubspot: Check out the guide “Advanced ChatGPT Prompt Engineering: From Basic to Expert in 7 Days.” Download it for free at http://clickhubspot.com/twist2

(19:15) Deel - Founders ship faster on Deel. Set up payroll for any country in minutes and get back to building. Visit http://deel.com/twist to learn more.

(29:53) Iru unifies identity, endpoint security, and compliance into one platform. Book a demo at http://iru.com/

Check out all our partner offers: https://partners.launch.co/

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Today’s show: 

Sean Liu gave his OpenClaw “eyes” by hooking the AI assistant up to his Meta Ray Bans. While Jason and Alex consider the implications… guest expert Alex Finn quickly loses interest…

It’s another All-Clawdbot TWiST where we debate the most essential uses for the viral agent platform. For their part, Alex Finn and Matt Van Horn are building practical skills to help founders (esp. solo founders)… Alex has a brain trust of AI agents working round the clock to improve his organization and content, while Matt designed a skill for his agent to order sushi lunches (keeping them under $20).

PLUS find out how Producer Oliver designed his “Model Council” based on Perplexity’s set-up, why running everything local is “illogical” for most people in 2026, AND why Jason’s next Founder U cohort will all be building with OpenClaw.

Timestamps: 
(00:00) Why Jason is STILL Claw-pilled! We can’t get enough!
(03:17) “Mr. Clawdbot” Alex Finn of Creator Buddy joins us! He’s Claw-Pilled too!
(04:50) Sean Liu (@_seanliu) added OpenClaw to his Meta Ray Bans… Here’s why Alex doesn’t care!
(8:33) Lost your job to AI? Maybe AI can make you a founder!
(12:35) LinkedIn Jobs - Hire right, the first time. Post your first job and get $100 off towards your job post at http://linkedin.com/twist Terms and conditions apply.
(13:34) “Last 30 Days” skill creator Matt Van Horn (@mvanhorn) joins the show
(14:54) Why Jason wants to invest in Matt’s new project.
(15:53) Meeting Alex’s organization of AI agents who collaborate on his projects autonomously
(22:28) Is Alex planning to turn his OpenClaw set-up into a company? Maybe…
(23:10) Every.io - For all of your incorporation, banking, payroll, benefits, accounting, taxes or other back-office administration needs, visit http://every.io/
(25:16) Using OpenClaw to create a “lights out” startup
(28:17) Deciding when to use local models vs. more powerful cloud-based models
(29:52) Northwest Registered Agent. Get more when you start your business with Northwest. In 10 clicks and 10 minutes, you can form your company and walk away with a real business identity —  Learn more at www.northwestregisteredagent.com/twist
(30:58) How Producer Oliver created a “Model Council” for LAUNCH based on Perplexity’s set-up
(35:52) Why it’s so important to have an orchestrator that knows the right model for the right task
(39:12) Why running everything local is “illogical” for most companies in 2026
(41:15) Matt walks us through the latest and greatest incarnation of his “Last 30 Days” skill
(45:57) Why Jason thinks recursive machine learning is the solution to human laziness
(46:38) How Alex has supercharged his social media and his startup during OpenClaw Mania
(50:15) Why Founder University is going ALL OPENCLAW next cohort
(51:21) How big a jump over Opus 4.5 is Opus 4.6?
(53:35) OpenClaw’s going to start scanning skills for malware… Will this help?
(57:13) No one was SUPER impressed by the AI dot com Super Bowl ad… except JCal
(1:01:11) Matt used his “Order Sushi” OpenClaw skill live on the show to get lunch
(1:04:08) Polymarket’s sharps are wagering on Claude 5’s hotly anticipated release

Thank you to our partners:
(12:35) LinkedIn Jobs - Hire right, the first time. Post your first job and get $100 off towards your job post at http://linkedin.com/twist Terms and conditions apply.
(23:10) Every.io - For all of your incorporation, banking, payroll, benefits, accounting, taxes or other back-office administration needs, visit http://every.io/
(29:52) Northwest Registered Agent. Get more when you start your business with Northwest. In 10 clicks and 10 minutes, you can form your company and walk away with a real business identity —  Learn more at www.northwestregisteredagent.com/twist

Check out all our partner offers: https://partners.launch.co/