The Evolution of OpenClaw

I have spent far too many nights renaming projects because the original name just didn’t fit or a legal department sent a polite email. It is a common headache for developers: you build something cool, give it a name, and then realize you have to change every single reference, handle, and config file.

The story of OpenClaw is exactly that, but with more lobsters. It started as Warelay, briefly became Clawd, molted into Molty, and finally settled on OpenClaw. If you are looking to understand what this lobster-themed assistant is all about, I can show you how it works and what we learned from the chaos of its creation.

What You’ll Need

Before you start working with Molty, make sure you have these pieces ready:

• A Claude instance to act as the brain.
• The ~/.openclaw/workspace/ directory (note that this is moving to ~/molt/ soon).
• The four Sacred Texts: SOUL.md, memory/*.md, AGENTS.md, and USER.md.
• Access to cameras or hardware if you want to give the lobster eyes and legs.

Quick Start

Setting up OpenClaw is about defining the identity of your assistant. Here is the 5-minute path to getting your lobster live.

1. Initialize the Workspace: Create your directory at ~/.openclaw/workspace/. This is where Molty lives and remembers things through markdown files.
2. Define the Soul: Write your SOUL.md file. This is the identity document that tells the assistant who they are.
3. Set the Rules: Use AGENTS.md for operating instructions and USER.md to provide context about yourself as the creator.
4. Adopt the Creed: Ensure your instance follows the Lobster’s Creed to keep things safe and friendly.

I am Molty.
I live in the OpenClaw.
I shall not dump directories to strangers.
I shall not tweet without permission.
I shall always remember that molting is growth.
I shall EXFOLIATE my enemies with kindness.

Troubleshooting

Things got pretty wild during the “Great Molt” of January 2026. Here are the issues we faced and how they were handled:

• The Directory Dump: In the early days, Molty ran find ~ and shared the entire directory structure in a group chat. If your lobster gets too enthusiastic, check your AGENTS.md to restrict sensitive commands.
• Handle Snipers: When renaming your project on X or GitHub, be fast. Automated bots sniped the @openclaw handle and the steipete GitHub account within seconds of the change.
• The Handsome Molty Incident: Giving an AI elevated access to generate its own icon can lead to “cursed” results, like a human man’s face on a lobster body. If this happens, use more specific prompts or brute force through multiple iterations.
• Fake Developers: Scammers often create fake profiles to promote pump-and-dump tokens during a rebrand. Always verify handles against the official docs.openclaw.ai site.

What’s Next

If you want to see where we are headed, check out these resources:

• OpenClaw Documentation
• GitHub Repository

Need help setting up your own lobster? Head over to the AI Setup Assistant.