Anthropic has decided to stop supporting third-party tools like OpenClaw in its Claude subscriptions. This move has caused frustration among users. The change will take effect at 12 PM PT on Saturday, according to Boris Cherny, head of Claude Code, who shared the update in a post on X. Users who want to continue using OpenClaw with Claude will need to either purchase extra usage bundles linked to their Claude account or use a separate API key through Anthropic’s developer platform.
Explaining the move, Cherny said, ‘We’ve been working hard to meet the increase in demand for Claude, and our subscriptions weren’t built for the usage patterns of these third-party tools. Capacity is a resource we manage thoughtfully and we are prioritising our customers using our products and API.’
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Anthropic also clarified that using Claude subscriptions with third-party tools goes against its terms of service. A company spokesperson told Business Insider that third-party tools put an ‘outsized strain on our systems.’
In an X post, Peter Steinberger, the creator of OpenClaw, wrote that he and Dave Morin, a board member of the OpenClaw foundation, tried to ‘talk sense into Anthropic’ and ‘best we managed was delaying this for a week.’
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‘We told Anthropic that we have many users who only signed up for their sub because of OpenClaw and that it’d be a loss if they cut them off,’ Steinberger told Business Insider. ‘Now they try to bury the news on a Friday night.’
User reactions on X have been mostly negative, with some even saying they may cancel their Claude subscription. One user wrote, ‘I love you guys, and Claude is amazing, but this low-key sucks… this decision is actually going to actively hurt a lot of people,’ while another commented, ‘Subscribed to Claude, but now paying extra for the Claw. Wah, what a scheme!’
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