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Ask HN: Any real OpenClaw (Clawd Bot/Molt Bot) users? What's your experience?

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Re: Ask HN: Any real OpenClaw (Clawd Bot/Molt Bot) users? What's your experience?

#183
post #179
post #94

Actually using it. Threw it on a spare box I had sitting around, mostly as a "second brain" rather than letting it run my life. Honestly, I've tried every PKM system out there—Obsidian, Notion, Roam, plain markdown—and never stuck with any of them. This is the first thing that's clicked. I just chat with it and it figures out what to file where. Everything's just .md files underneath, so I can grep it, git it, whatev…

Thanks for sharing. Just on the PKM side, is there something about this setup that Claude Code + AGENTS.md (that you get it to write for you) can't do? Is it the chat integration or does it actually have a better knowledge management setup?

It could all be done with Claude Code and tools. But it 'just works' and has done all the plumbing for you. The built-in memory systems help too, but again that can be done with Claude Code or others. I think this is just a step in the pre-build systems that work how you want instead of having to work through every bit yourself. I'm sure the big boys are working on more polished offerings that will be cleaner. The Open AI Codex app that just came out today for example.

Re: Ask HN: Any real OpenClaw (Clawd Bot/Molt Bot) users? What's your experience?

#184
You nailed it with the 'hype smell.' The silence in your circles is likely because the churn rate on OpenClaw is massive. Most people hit that 'Day 2' wall—where the novelty wears off and the reality of securing a bot with shell access sets in—and they just quietly shut it down.

I was in that exact boat (wanted the agency, didn't want the sysadmin headache). I’ve actually pivoted to testing PAIO (Personal AI Operator) instead. It targets the same 'agentic' utility but uses a BYOK architecture and a managed security layer.

It basically solves the specific failures you linked:

Security: You aren't leaving a shell open on your local machine.

Setup: It’s a one-click integration rather than a failed sandbox install.

Cost: BYOK means you control the token burn directly, so no surprise bills from a runaway loop.

It feels like the 'adult in the room' version of these experiments. Less dramatic stories, perhaps, but it actually runs daily without me worrying it’s going to rm -rf my home directory.

Re: Ask HN: Any real OpenClaw (Clawd Bot/Molt Bot) users? What's your experience?

#185

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Good News! The Models are done, and you can download them for free. Even if they stopped being worked on this moment, those are finished and usable right now, and won't get any worse over time.

Old models become outdated. Not sure how useful an outdated model can still be.

Depending on the pre-training structure, you can fine-tune old local models (even locally if you have a nice GPU) to steer behavior towards your desires.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yGkJj_4bjpE

Re: Ask HN: Any real OpenClaw (Clawd Bot/Molt Bot) users? What's your experience?

#186
What strikes me is the game-theoretical outcomes. As automating digital actions becomes more common and more convincing, the value of errors and "authenticity" goes up.

I don't see how these agents can generate income. They are cost centers. Perhaps, useful, as sifting through the increasing volume of "content" becomes useful. But doing so sets of an arms race. These always lead to rupture and a new equilibrium.

Re: Ask HN: Any real OpenClaw (Clawd Bot/Molt Bot) users? What's your experience?

#190

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Good News! The Models are done, and you can download them for free. Even if they stopped being worked on this moment, those are finished and usable right now, and won't get any worse over time.

Old models become outdated. Not sure how useful an outdated model can still be.

Exactly as useful as they are today. Sure, it might not hold a candle to a model trained in 10 years, but it'll still be exactly as useful then as it is today, and run a lot faster too.
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