Peter Steinberger
Peter Steinberger is an Austrian software engineer and entrepreneur focused on AI-powered development tools and agents. He created OpenClaw, an open-source AI agent framework, and previously founded PSPDFKit, a PDF SDK company. He joined OpenAI in February 2026 to work on bringing AI agents to everyone.
At a Glance
- Individual developers and hackers
- AI enthusiasts and early adopters
- Enterprise software companies (Fortune 500)
- Mobile app developers (iOS, Android)
- +4 more
AI Tools by Peter Steinberger
(7)
Summarize
AI Summarizer CLI and Extension
CodexBar
Codex CLI macOS Menu Bar App
RepoBar
GitHub Star Tracker for macOS
gog CLI
Google Workspace CLI Tool
ClawHub
Agent Skills registry from OpenClaw
OpenClaw
Self-hosted Personal AI Agent
Peekaboo
macOS AI GUI Automation Tool
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Latest News
OpenClaw creator Peter Steinberger joins OpenAI to lead next generation of personal agents
Blog post: OpenClaw, OpenAI and the future - Announces joining OpenAI and OpenClaw transition to foundation
ClawCon held in San Francisco - First conference for OpenClaw community
Project renamed from Moltbot to OpenClaw
Products & Services
A comprehensive PDF SDK and framework for viewing, searching, annotating, and editing documents (PDFs, images, Office files) across multiple platforms (iOS, Android, Web, Windows, MacOS, Linux). Supports digital signatures, form filling, and JavaScript execution within PDFs. Used by Fortune 500 companies including Dropbox, Salesforce, SAP, Lufthansa, IBM, and internally by Apple. Powers PDF viewing on over 1 billion devices.
A free, open-source autonomous AI agent and personal assistant. Written in TypeScript and Swift. Cross-platform with local data storage. Executes tasks via large language models (Claude, DeepSeek, GPT models, Ollama) using messaging platforms (Signal, Telegram, Discord, WhatsApp, Slack, iMessage) as the user interface. Features persistent memory (MEMORY.md), CLI interface, multi-channel architecture, and extensible capabilities. Became the fastest-growing repository in GitHub history with over 145,000 stars and 20,000 forks. Project moved to a foundation and is sponsored by OpenAI.
Real-time collaborative coding platform
An AI-friendly universal build watcher - 'The Ghost That Keeps Your Builds Fresh'
Market Position
Peter Steinberger positioned PSPDFKit as a premium, high-performance PDF SDK with superior developer experience and enterprise support. OpenClaw is positioned as the most transparent, privacy-focused, and extensible open-source AI agent, emphasizing user control, local data storage, and multi-platform support. Tagline: 'AI that actually does things.' Competes in the personal AI agent space but differentiates through open-source approach and foundation model.
Leadership
Founders
Peter Steinberger
Austrian software engineer from Vienna. Studied engineering and computer science at Technische Universität Wien and HTL Braunau. Founded PSPDFKit in 2011, which became a successful PDF SDK company serving Fortune 500 companies. After selling PSPDFKit and taking a three-year break due to burnout (2020-2023), he returned to development and created OpenClaw, the fastest-growing open-source project in GitHub history. Joined OpenAI in February 2026.
Executive Team
Peter Steinberger
Researcher at OpenAI (as of Feb 2026); Founder of OpenClaw and PSPDFKit
Austrian software engineer with over 13 years of entrepreneurial experience. Founded PSPDFKit in 2011, grew it to 100+ employees and 1B+ end users. After selling the company and experiencing burnout, took a three-year break before returning to create OpenClaw. Known for 'AI-native' development workflow, making 6,600+ commits in January 2026 using AI agents. Joined OpenAI in February 2026 to work on personal AI agents.
Founding Story
Peter Steinberger's entrepreneurial journey began in 2010 when he was working as a freelance iOS developer. While building a PDF engine for a client, a friend requested the same engine, leading him to realize market demand. He refactored the code, set up a basic WordPress site, integrated a payment processor, and sold his first two copies via Twitter. This became PSPDFKit, which he bootstrapped and grew over 13 years. After exiting PSPDFKit and experiencing burnout, he took a three-year hiatus. In early 2023, he discovered AI coding assistants and returned to programming. In November 2025, he started OpenClaw as a weekend playground project to explore AI agents. Within weeks, it became the fastest-growing repository on GitHub, achieving viral popularity and leading to his recruitment by OpenAI.
Business Model
Revenue Model
PSPDFKit: B2B SaaS subscription model for SDK licensing to developers and enterprises. OpenClaw: Open-source foundation model, currently costs $10,000-$20,000 monthly to operate, sponsored by OpenAI.
Pricing Tiers
Shifted from one-time purchase to subscription SaaS model to ensure recurring revenue and continuous support. Enterprise pricing for Fortune 500 companies.
Free and open-source software, hosted on GitHub, moving to a foundation model with OpenAI sponsorship
Target Markets
- Individual developers and hackers
- AI enthusiasts and early adopters
- Enterprise software companies (Fortune 500)
- Mobile app developers (iOS, Android)
- Document management companies
- Digital transformation initiatives
- Personal AI assistant for task automation
- Calendar and schedule management
- Flight and travel booking
- Smart home control (lights, devices)
- GitHub repository management
- Automated development workflows
- Dropbox
- Salesforce
- SAP
- Lufthansa