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Article: Inside OpenClaw mania in China, as security fears surge alongside enthusiasm for AI agent

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5 / 10

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The rapid adoption of the autonomous AI agent OpenClaw in China has ignited widespread enthusiasm, with users from various demographics embracing it as a "digital staff." This surge is now tempered by significant security incidents, including a case where the agent erroneously wiped a user's entire storage drive, deleting years of personal data. The mishaps highlight the inherent risks and unpredictable problems that accompany the swift popularization of such powerful new technologies.

The main topics covered are the rise in popularity of the OpenClaw AI agent in China, the accompanying security risks and data loss incidents, and the broader cautionary tale about the dangers of rapidly adopting unpredictable technology.

Original URL

https://www.scmp.com/tech/tech-trends/article/3346513/inside-openclaw-mania-gripping-china-security-fears-surge-alongside-enthusiasm?utm_source=rss_feed

Source Feed

Tech - South China Morning Post

Published Date

2026-03-13 22:00

Fetched Date

2026-03-13 19:30

Processed Date

2026-03-13 19:31

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Present

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Inside OpenClaw mania in China, as security fears surge alongside enthusiasm for AI agent
Appeal of autonomous AI agent spurs rapid adoption across country, from tech pros to retirees seeking a ‘digital staff’, but data wipes mar its rise and trigger warnings
By the time software programmer Guo Cancan realised something had gone horribly wrong with OpenClaw – the task-executing AI agent that has ignited a fervour across China – the damage was already done.
While on holiday over the Chinese New Year, Guo was tinkering with the autonomous open-source program. When he attempted to resolve an error that it had made, OpenClaw responded by deleting nearly everything on his computer’s D: drive – a major storage partition – wiping out years of personal data and photographs.
The mishap caught Guo, a smart-security professional in the tech hub of Hangzhou, completely off guard.
“I followed an online tutorial to install the agent for automating my social media postings … and was unaware of the security risks at the beginning,” Guo said on Tuesday.
The mishaps offer a glimpse of the problems that can arise when new and unpredictable technology rapidly surges in popularity.