Discussing ‘Bitcoin’ on OpenClaw’s AI Discord Results in Immediate Ban
The OpenClaw Discord community has implemented a strict ban on any mention of “bitcoin” or cryptocurrencies. This rule, instituted by Peter Steinberger, the developer behind OpenClaw, seeks to protect the project from past challenges tied to crypto activities.
Background on OpenClaw and Its Development
OpenClaw is an open-source AI agent framework that has recently gained significant attention, amassing over 200,000 stars on GitHub since its launch in late January 2026. The framework is designed for multi-agent benchmarks and has garnered a dedicated community.
Discord Ban and Its Causes
Steinberger clarified the ban on mentioning cryptocurrencies following a previous incident that severely impacted the project. A user faced immediate banning for discussing bitcoin in a technical context. The user’s comment was not promotional but rather analytical, referencing block height as a timekeeping method for their benchmark.
Steinberger stated, “We have strict server rules that you accepted when you entered the server. No crypto mention whatsoever is one of them.” This ban was enacted after a series of events in late January, where unauthorized crypto promotions caused considerable turmoil within the community.
Crypto-Related Challenges
In late January, OpenClaw faced a crisis when Steinberger received a trademark notice from Anthropic, which claimed the original name, Clawdbot, was too similar to its own product, Claude. During the rebranding process, scammers exploited the moment of confusion. They hijacked Steinberger’s old online accounts and promoted a fraudulent token named $CLAWD on the Solana platform.
The fake token rapidly reached a market capitalization of $16 million but crashed by over 90% shortly after Steinberger publicly denied any connection to it. This incident left him dealing with harassment from perplexed investors who confused him for promoting the token.
Current Status of OpenClaw
Despite facing these challenges, OpenClaw has since thrived. Steinberger has joined OpenAI to lead its personal agents division, and the project has transitioned to an independent open-source foundation. However, the ban on cryptocurrency discussions in its Discord remains enforced as a protective measure against speculative culture’s detrimental effects.
- Project Name: OpenClaw
- GitHub Stars: Over 200,000
- Ban Date: Established February 2026
- Market Cap of $CLAWD: Reached $16 million
- Crash Rate of $CLAWD: Over 90%
- Number of Malicious Skills Found: 386
In summary, the measures taken by OpenClaw serve as a reminder of the volatile nature of cryptocurrency and its ability to disrupt legitimate projects. The strict regulations aim to foster a stable and focused environment for developers and users alike on the platform.
