Daily Brief: OpenAI Hires OpenClaw Creator Peter Steinberger to Lead Multi-Agent Personal Agents
OpenAI Hires OpenClaw Creator Peter Steinberger to Lead Multi-Agent Personal Agents. Indian AI Infrastructure Startup Neysa Raises Up to $1.2B Led by Blackstone for 20,000+ GPUs. Microsoft Report Show.
OpenAI Hires OpenClaw Creator Peter Steinberger to Lead Multi-Agent Personal Agents
OpenAI is doubling down on AI agents with a high-profile hire: Peter Steinberger, the solo founder behind the viral open-source project OpenClaw, is joining to lead next-gen personal agents focused on multi-agent interactions. Built in under three months, OpenClaw caught fire for its rapid development and capabilities, and it'll stay open-source with OpenAI's backing.[1][2][3]
CEO Sam Altman announced the move on February 15, signaling OpenAI's push to outpace rivals in agent tech. This comes amid fierce competition, blending solo bootstrapping success with big-tech resources. It's sparking X chatter on bootstrapping versus VC-backed agents—as one observer put it, proof that "one dev can move faster than a room full of VCs."
Indian AI Infrastructure Startup Neysa Raises Up to $1.2B Led by Blackstone for 20,000+ GPUs
India's AI ambitions just got a massive cash injection: Neysa, an AI cloud infra startup, closed up to $1.2B ($600M equity + $600M debt) led by Blackstone, with Teachers Venture Growth and TVS Capital. The funds target deploying 20,000+ GPUs domestically, tackling global compute shortages head-on.[4][5][6]
Announced February 15-16, this is India's biggest AI funding round ever, underscoring the country's drive for sovereign AI capacity. On X, it's hailed as a landmark for non-US AI infra plays.
Microsoft Report Shows High AI Adoption in Nordics and Europe, Trailing UAE (64%) and Singapore (61%)
New data from Microsoft's "Global AI Adoption in 2025" report flips the script on Europe's AI lag. UAE leads at 64%, Singapore at 61%, but Nordics shine: Norway at 46%, Ireland 45%, France 44%. No more "no AI in Europe" trope—this shows robust uptake in key regions.[7][8][9]
The early 2026 release highlights a global digital divide but spotlights Nordic strength. X reactions celebrate Europe challenging the narrative with real adoption numbers.
European Defense and Security Startups Raise Record $8.7B in 2025, Up 55% YoY with AI at 44%
European defense, security, and resilience startups smashed records in 2025, pulling in $8.7B in VC—up 55% year-over-year. AI took 44% of that, fueled by geopolitical heat and demand for autonomous systems and deep tech.[10][11][12]
The Dealroom-NATO Innovation Fund report dropped February 9, tying investments to rising tensions. On X, it's clear: global instability is supercharging AI in military apps.
What This Means For Your Business
OpenAI's agent push and Neysa's mega-raise scream urgency in multi-agent systems and compute scaling—areas where judgment trumps raw code. At Up North AI, our multi-agent orchestration (MCP/A2A) and agent workforce design expertise positions Nordic firms to build reliable agent teams without the hype pitfalls, much like Steinberger's solo win shows lean can beat bloated.
Nordic AI adoption is thriving per Microsoft, and defense funding is exploding—perfect for our AI quality & trust reviews and outcome engineering. European regs demand trustworthy AI, especially in security; we ensure your agents deliver defensible results amid sovereign compute builds.
Key takeaway: Agents and infra are heating up globally—invest in orchestration and trust now, before compute wars lock you out. Code is free. Judgment isn't.
Sources
- https://www.cnbc.com/2026/02/15/openclaw-creator-peter-steinberger-joining-openai-altman-says.html
- https://www.reuters.com/business/openclaw-founder-steinberger-joins-openai-open-source-bot-becomes-foundation-2026-02-15
- https://fortune.com/2026/02/15/openai-openclaw-ai-agent-developer-peter-steinberg-moltbot-clawdbot-moltbook
- https://techcrunch.com/2026/02/15/blackstone-backs-neysa-in-up-to-1-2b-financing-as-india-pushes-to-build-domestic-ai-compute
- https://www.dealstreetasia.com/stories/blackstone-neysa-funding-round-473009
- https://yourstory.com/ai-story/ai-cloud-firm-neysa-1-bilion-capital-raise-backed-by-blackstone
- https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/research/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Microsoft-AI-Diffusion-Report-2025-H2.pdf
- https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/corporate-responsibility/topics/ai-economy-institute/reports/global-ai-adoption-2025
- https://www.visualcapitalist.com/ai-adoption-rates-by-country
- https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260209841430/en/Dealroom-and-NATO-Innovation-Fund-European-Defence-Security-Resilience-Startups-Smash-Record-with-$8.7B-Raised-in-2025
- https://finance.yahoo.com/news/dealroom-nato-innovation-fund-european-060500353.html
- https://www.nif.fund/
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