OpenAI’s Dots: Like OpenClaw declawed – for $200/mo ChatGPT Pro users

ZDNET’s key takeaways

• OpenAI Dots runs GPT-6 agents on dedicated cloud computers.
• Dots promises safer automation, but permissions remain a risk.
• Powerful productivity may come with unpredictable costs.

At today’s Dev Days announcement, OpenAI introduced a new service that promises to provide enormous productivity benefits and probably some massive headaches. Called Dots, the service is basically a cloud-based virtual machine (VM), on which you can spin up AI agents powered by GPT-6 Astra.

The spirit of OpenClaw

Put another way, it’s what happens when a giant AI company acquihires OpenClaw and turns it into a scalable (and potentially) safer product in the cloud.

While some folks have had difficulty wrapping their heads around what OpenClaw can do, others have gone fully all-in, utilizing its rather astounding capabilities. Because I see a direct spiritual line between what OpenClaw can do and what Dots can do, let’s start with OpenClaw.

Also: Meta Muse is the worst AI agent for privacy – and I’ve tried them all

To be clear, nothing in OpenAI’s blog post today mentions OpenClaw, but Dots are so similar, it’s a worthwhile starting point.

OpenClaw’s genius was that it took the normally chat-based model of AI interaction and turned it into an always-on, autonomous, agentic helper. It learned fairly constantly (if set up correctly) and grew in its understanding of your needs over time. OpenClaw also started out running on your basic home machine.