Meta Acknowledges Similarities Between AI Agent Muse and OpenClaw

Meta's newly unveiled AI assistant, Muse, was acknowledged by Nat Friedman, head of Meta Superintelligence Labs, to be significantly influenced by OpenClaw, although it was developed independently.

"We built Muse from scratch, but it is definitely heavily inspired by OpenClaw as a product. After using OpenClaw in January, I acquired hundreds of Mac minis for our team, and many of us fell in love with it," stated Friedman.

This revelation emerged following conversations on X, where users noticed striking similarities between the two AI platforms, particularly regarding workspace file names and the content of SOUL.md, which outlines the AI’s identity and capabilities.

Ans Nand, co-founder of Vibecode, noted that "Muse is literally OpenClaw for the average person," highlighting how accessible Muse appears to be compared to its inspiration.

Despite the similarities, Friedman emphasized that the Muse team sought to elevate the assistant beyond a mere copy of OpenClaw. Their goals included establishing user safety, data protection, enhanced usability, and the potential to scale for billions of users.

Friedman also praised Peter Steinberger, a key figure behind OpenClaw, for his brilliance and the innovative framework he created, which has inspired many in the tech industry.

In a broader context, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg suggested in July the development of a personal superintelligence designed for individual user benefit, rather than for a select few corporations.