Anthropic revises pricing, Claude AI users to pay separately for OpenClaw access

Anthropic has announced that its Claude AI subscriptions will no longer support bundled access to third-party AI tools such as OpenClaw, with users required to pay separately under a new pricing structure.

The company made the announcement via a social media post on X, giving users less than a day's notice before the changes come into effect.

Boris Cherny stated that users who wish to continue using Claude with OpenClaw will need to opt for a separate pay-as-you-go plan, which will be independent of their existing Claude subscription. He stated that the company has been working to address rising demand for Claude and that its subscription model was not designed to accommodate the usage patterns associated with third-party tools. He added that capacity is being managed carefully and that priority is being given to customers using Anthropic's own products and API.

The changes are set to take effect from 12 PM Pacific Time on April 4, with Anthropic offering a one-time credit equivalent to the user's monthly subscription cost. Cherny further stated that the move is intended to manage growth sustainably over the long term.

The announcement prompted a response from Peter Steinberger, who stated in a separate post on X that he and OpenClaw board member Dave Morin had attempted to persuade Anthropic to reconsider the decision, adding that the only outcome was a one-week delay in implementing the changes. He stated that the timing of the move coincided with the introduction of similar features within Anthropic's own ecosystem, suggesting a shift towards more closed systems.

OpenClaw gained prominence earlier this year as an open-source AI agent platform capable of managing tasks such as emails, calendars and other workflows across messaging platforms including WhatsApp, Telegram, Discord and iMessage. Unlike traditional chatbot interfaces, the platform allows users to interact with AI agents directly within apps they already use.

Following its rise in popularity, Steinberger has been hired by OpenAI to work on next-generation personal AI agents. Meanwhile, Anthropic has also been developing its own agentic AI features, including Claude Cowork, Dispatch and Channels, as it expands its in-house capabilities in the space.