Help, I'm stuck between two OpenClaw nerds

I'm Fabienne. At Tech_42, I do everything that has nothing to do with code. Communication, planning, client relations — that sort of thing. I understand what the guys do, but I really don't need to know what a "webhook" is to do my job well.

At least, that's what I thought. Until Chris and Wouter discovered OpenClaw.

What is OpenClaw?

For the uninitiated (like me a few months ago): OpenClaw is an open-source AI assistant that runs on your own computer. Like Siri, but on steroids and with a lobster as a mascot. Yes, a lobster. We'll get to that.

The thing can apparently do everything. Send messages via WhatsApp, manage your calendar, control your smart lights, play music, book invoices — you name it. And it's free. Open source. Which apparently means tech people go absolutely wild for it.

The birth of Truus, Jennifer and Ada

It started innocently enough. Chris installed OpenClaw on a Thursday afternoon and named his assistant "Truus." Why Truus? No idea. Chris things.

"Hey Fab, check out what Truus can do!"

Truus could set a reminder. Wow. I was overwhelmed (not).

But then Wouter installed it too. And Wouter — who by definition wants to do everything Chris does, but better — named his assistant "Jennifer." Plus a second one: "Ada." Two AI assistants. Because one apparently wasn't enough.

From that moment on, it was war.

The daily arms race

Every morning starts the same way now. I put down my bag, open my laptop, and before I've even had my first coffee:

"Fab! You have to hear what Truus learned last night!"

Or:

"Jennifer can now read my entire calendar out loud. In Dutch. With proper pronunciation."

It goes on all day. It's as if they're keeping an invisible scoreboard. Truus can do something? Then Jennifer has to do it too, but better. Jennifer has a new skill? Then Chris is up until midnight updating Truus.

I considered hanging a whiteboard with "Truus vs Jennifer — Current Score," but I was afraid they'd actually start using it.

Voice agents: talking to your laptop

One morning I walked into the office and heard Chris talking to his laptop. Not typing. Talking. As if his laptop were a person.

"Truus, what's on my schedule today?"

And Truus answered. With a voice. Just out loud, from his speakers. In an open office. At half past eight in the morning.

Wouter was of course unimpressed. "Jennifer's been doing that for a week."

By now it's completely normal for three "people" to be talking in our office: Chris, Wouter, and an AI voice announcing there's a standup at ten. Visitors sometimes look a bit startled.

DJ Truus and DJ Jennifer

On a Friday afternoon, the office was quiet. Until Chris called out: "Truus, put on some music."

And Truus did. Just like that. Via Spotify. With a voice that said: "Playing your Friday Afternoon playlist."

Wouter, who couldn't let this slide: "Jennifer, play some better music."

What followed was a kind of AI DJ battle. Truus played lo-fi beats, Jennifer countered with deep house. Chris and Wouter both sat there triumphantly as if they had personally trained the best DJ in the Netherlands.

I just put on my headphones.

Home Assistant: the office as a spaceship

The office has smart lights. And a smart thermostat. That was always fine — you pressed a button and the light came on.

Until the guys connected their OpenClaw to Home Assistant.

Now the lights turn on when Chris says "Truus, lights on." And off when Wouter says "Jennifer, it's too bright." And then on again. And then off again. Like a light-pong match between two AI assistants.

At one point the thermostat changed temperature three times in one afternoon because Truus thought it was too cold and Jennifer thought it was too warm. I eventually just put on my cardigan.

Moneybird: even the bookkeeping has to be smart

You'd think the bookkeeping would be sacred. That you wouldn't mess with it using your AI toys. Wrong.

Wouter connected Jennifer to Moneybird. Jennifer can now book invoices. "Jennifer, book this invoice under project costs." And it happens. Just like that.

Chris was jealous. Truus couldn't do that yet. That lasted exactly two days. Then Truus could do it too.

I have to be honest: this is the point where I went quiet for a moment. Because it genuinely saves time. But I'm not going to tell them that.

The lobster in the room

Can we talk about the mascot for a moment? OpenClaw has a lobster as its logo. A lobster. With claws.

Chris stuck a lobster sticker on his laptop. Wouter has two. Somehow an inflatable lobster has also appeared in the office. Nobody knows who ordered it. I have my suspicions.

Every time I see that lobster, I think: this is my life now. I'm in an office with two grown men who talk to their laptops, compete over the best AI assistant, and have an inflatable lobster as an unofficial colleague.

The honest conclusion

But you know what? It's actually pretty fun.

Yes, it's absurd sometimes. Yes, I don't understand half of what they do. And yes, I really don't need to know what a "webhook to Home Assistant with a cron job via Moneybird" is.

But the energy is infectious. Those two are genuinely enthusiastic about what they're building. They make each other's work better through that constant challenge. And secretly, I'm learning from it too. I now know what a voice agent is. I know you can connect AI to your bookkeeping. And I know that a lobster is apparently the symbol for the future of personal assistants.

And maybe — just maybe — I'm considering installing my own OpenClaw assistant.

I'll call her Gerda.

But Chris and Wouter don't need to know that.

— Fabienne