7d ago16 sources69 reactions

Meta admits Muse AI agent was heavily inspired by OpenClaw

14 DoomStory + reactionsCopying dispute alongside strong product adoption numbers

By Splitfeed EditorialUpdated Sep 26, 2026, 20:18 UTC

16 sources · TechCrunch AI · Google News · The Decoder

Doom: Meta admits Muse was "heavily inspired" by OpenClaw, with nearly identical filenames and file contents
Doom: OpenAI is reportedly discussing a formal response to Muse's similarities to OpenClaw
Boom: Muse reached 500,000 users in its first week and topped Apple's App Store charts
Boom: A later Apptopia estimate put Muse's US daily active users at 600,000
Boom: Each Muse user gets a free cloud computer running Ubuntu Linux, monitored by a Sentinel process
Neutral: Nat Friedman stated Muse was built from scratch despite acknowledged similarities to OpenClaw

The story in full

Meta launched its AI agent Muse, which reached 500,000 users in its first week and hit number one on Apple's App Store, with a later Apptopia estimate putting US daily active users at 600,000. Meta acknowledged the product was "heavily inspired" by the open-source project OpenClaw, with some workspace filenames and file contents described as nearly identical. Nat Friedman noted that Muse was built from scratch despite the similarities.

OpenClaw is the open-source project that multiple outlets describe as the platform that started the AI agent category, and OpenAI has begun discussing a response of its own. Meta says Muse gives every user a free cloud computer running Ubuntu Linux, monitored by a process called Sentinel for sensitive actions outside the user's workspace. The degree to which OpenClaw's work was incorporated remains disputed.

Analysis

391 words

By Splitfeed EditorialLast updated Sep 26, 2026, 20:18 UTC

On September 22, 2026, Meta acknowledged that its new AI agent Muse was "heavily inspired" by the open-source project OpenClaw, with some workspace filenames and file contents described as nearly identical. Nat Friedman stated publicly that Muse was built from scratch despite those similarities. Muse gives each user a free cloud computer running Ubuntu Linux, monitored by a process called Sentinel for sensitive actions outside the user's workspace. The product reached 500,000 users in its first week, topped Apple's App Store charts, and a later Apptopia estimate put US daily active users at 600,000. OpenAI has begun discussing a formal response to the situation.

The core dispute is not the adoption numbers but what sits beneath them. OpenClaw is widely credited as the project that established the AI agent category, and the degree to which Meta drew on its work remains contested. Meta's "built from scratch" framing sits awkwardly alongside the admission of nearly identical filenames and content, and the question of whether open-source inspiration crosses into something more problematic has yet to be resolved. Meanwhile, Muse connects to users' banking, email, and daily tasks, giving the privacy stakes an immediacy that goes beyond a typical app launch.

The pro-AI camp is focused almost entirely on utility and momentum. Carl Quintanilla described Muse as the most useful AI app he had ever used, noting it flagged and canceled duplicate subscriptions automatically. TechX Geek pointed out that Muse outpaced ChatGPT's early mobile launch by downloads and daily active users. The anti-AI camp centers its concern on Meta's track record. Tuffy said Zuck is almost the last person they would want to give more personal data to, and Michel Estefan highlighted Meta's recent history of court settlements over predatory practices. The middle ground is more measured. YY Ahn called Muse well made and potentially the beginning of next-gen AI agents for the masses, but flagged potential privacy and surveillance nightmares. Nicholas Campiz questioned whether under a million downloads of a free app, pushed through Meta's unrivaled distribution channels, is actually impressive.

The clearest near-term signal to watch is how OpenAI responds formally to the OpenClaw situation, and whether any legal or licensing challenge follows. Carl Quintanilla noted that monetization expectations for Muse are elevated, with a future product referred to as Watermelon seen as the test of whether those expectations can be met.

Pro-AI10

What Pro-AI voices are sayingMuse is praised as a genuinely useful tool that handles tasks like canceling subscriptions, making calls, and managing daily life, with adoption outpacing ChatGPT's early mobile launch and boosting Meta's market cap to a 13-year high.

Quote 1 of 10

the most useful A.I. app I had ever used. .. I connected my credit cards to Muse and .. it spun up .. rows of data each in minutes, then flagged two duplicate subscriptions, which it canceled for me.

Carl Quintanillavia Bluesky

Anti-AI54

What Anti-AI voices are sayingCritics warn that granting Muse access to banking and email data poses serious privacy and security risks, and many are skeptical that Meta can be trusted with such information. A notable minority doubts whether the underlying technology is as capable as marketed.

Quote 1 of 13

My dude... you know that's called "cognitive surrender," right?

Dave Karpfvia Bluesky

Middle Ground5

What Middle Ground voices are sayingSome see Muse as a promising step toward mass-market AI agents but flag real privacy and surveillance concerns, and at least one voice questions whether the download numbers are as impressive as they seem given Meta's distribution advantages.

Quote 1 of 5

near-term expectations for META to monetize Muse are decidedly elevated. They can be met – and exceeded - if Watermelon is amazing.

Carl Quintanillavia Bluesky

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More Pro-AI reactions (9)

“Meta’s Muse disrupts “consumer inertia” stocks — “the tendency to keep buying something out of habit even when a better alternative exists.” @bloomberg.com $META www.bloomberg.com/news/article...”
Carl Quintanilla, Bluesky · 11:05 UTC
“I’m using MUSE by META to help me get some control over my daily tasks. As you know life can be overwhelming sometimes. Now it’s a little bit less.”
Luke O'Neil, Bluesky · 00:27 UTC
“I have been willing to pay a lot of money for a mobile AI tool that can make outbound calls for me. I dread making medical appointments or other reservations.”
gavinray, Hacker News · 16:58 UTC
“$Meta Muse app adoption beats ChatGPT with 1.8M downloads in 12 days... yet people claim to hate data centers.”
Mike Zaccardi, CFA, CMT, Bluesky · 17:57 UTC
“Why Muse really just added billions to Meta's market cap and to Mark Zuckerberg's net worth”
Yahoo Finance, Bluesky · 10:06 UTC
“𝗠𝗲𝘁𝗮’𝘀 𝗠𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝗶𝘀 𝗼𝘂𝘁𝗽𝗮𝗰𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗖𝗵𝗮𝘁𝗚𝗣𝗧’𝘀 𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗹𝘆 𝗺𝗼𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗲 𝗹𝗮𝘂𝗻𝗰𝗵 Meta’s new AI agent Muse has racked up more downloads and daily active users in the U.S. and Canada than ChatGPT did over the same period after its mobile debut, according to”
TechX Geek, Bluesky · 06:25 UTC
“Muse встановили близько 2,8 млн разів за перші 12 днів.”
Channel Tech, Bluesky · 10:15 UTC
“Why Muse just added billions to Meta's market cap”
Yahoo Finance, Bluesky · 14:06 UTC
“Meta stock hits a 13‑year high, thanks to Muse AI.”
moneymindedfunk.bsky.social, Bluesky · 11:19 UTC

More Anti-AI reactions (12)

“At least, at long last, Silicon Valley has invented a technology that can play fantasy football for me. #TheFutureIsNow”
Dave Karpf, Bluesky, skeptic · 00:14 UTC
“This has not proven popular. “Not sure what I am missing here but why is this a ‘feature?,’ one employee wrote. “This has potential for so much negative PR. It could portray us as ‘their AI is not good enough”
Jason Koebler, Bluesky · 16:36 UTC
“highlighting the inherent dangers of AI helpers”
WIRED, Bluesky · 13:00 UTC
“Giving any AI access to your credentials, you bank info, or your important files is like giving your weird moody 15 year old a rifle in the hopes that the discipline of learning marksmanship will straighten him out.”
Flazlo, Bluesky · 17:16 UTC
“I'm skeptical about Muse”
Casey Newton, Bluesky, skeptic · 00:39 UTC
“Meta’s “personal AI agent,” dubbed Muse, recently shot to the top of the iOS App Store charts. Investors and analysts are happy, but sources told The Verge that morale is down, AI initiatives are scattered at best, and the company’s”
The Verge, Bluesky · 16:44 UTC
“Autonomous bot with access to your banking information what can go wrong”
Luigi de Guzman, Bluesky · 00:14 UTC
“The introduction of Muse, Meta's new 24/7 AI assistant, carries significant implications for users' autonomy and data privacy”
Just Security, Bluesky · 12:51 UTC
“Is there a stage lower than cognitive surrender? I guess brain dead?”
bjkeefe, Bluesky · 00:17 UTC
“is this basically just a new way to collect/aggregate individualized data?”
Julie Novkov, Bluesky · 11:00 UTC
“They are obsessed with “FIRE ALL HUMANS”, which is why they’re still dumping money into this shit, including paying humans shitty wages to do the work intended for the FIRE ALL HUMANS machine.”
jace cavacini, Bluesky · 17:13 UTC
“"AI" is Actually Indians remains undefeated.”
🄼🄴🄴🄷🄰🅆🄻 ⭕, Bluesky, skeptic · 16:37 UTC

More Middle Ground reactions (4)

“godspeed to everyone that wants an llm to do their banking and all that”
daryl "die little, die big" b 🏳️‍⚧️, Bluesky · 16:49 UTC
“Meta Muse, which is pretty well made, may be the beginning of the next-gen AI agent for the masses, but of course with potential privacy/surveillance nightmares.”
YY Ahn, Bluesky · 13:10 UTC
“what are the compelling consumer use cases for #GenAI agents? I struggle with that. What do I do for myself now that an agent could do as well, and are the benefits worth the risks?”
Jeff Greene, Bluesky · 11:19 UTC
“less than a million downloads of a free app in a little under a week when Meta have an unrivaled set of channels to push it aggressively doesn't particularly seem impressive.”
Nicholas Campiz, Bluesky, skeptic · 17:54 UTC