What Is a Claw? The Next Layer of AI After Chatbots

Andrej Karpathy recently described an emerging pattern in AI infrastructure that he calls “Claws.” The name comes from the lobster-claw icon that's become associated with these systems. But what Karpathy identified is something we've been building and running in production for months.

The Three Layers of AI

Think of AI evolution in three layers:

1. Models — Raw intelligence. GPT, Claude, Gemini. They generate text when you ask them to.
2. Agents — Models with tools. They can browse the web, write code, call APIs. But they exist only during a single session.
3. Claws — Agents with persistence, scheduling, messaging, and memory. They run 24/7 on your hardware. They remember yesterday. They coordinate with each other. They act on your behalf while you sleep.

A chatbot is Layer 1. Cursor or Copilot is Layer 2. What we build at Parallax is Layer 3.

What Makes a Claw Different?

A Claw has four properties that chatbots and basic agents don't:

• Persistent memory. Every conversation, decision, and lesson is saved to files. When the agent wakes up in a new session, it reads its memory and picks up where it left off.
• Scheduled autonomy. Claws don't wait for you to ask. They run cron jobs — checking email, monitoring systems, generating reports — on a schedule you define.
• Multi-agent coordination. A Claw isn't one agent. It's a team of specialists who message each other, hand off tasks, and verify each other's work.
• Identity through soul files. Each agent has a SOUL.md that defines its personality, beliefs, anti-patterns, and voice. Not just what it does — who it is.

Why This Matters for Your Business

Most businesses use AI in the most basic way possible: a chat window where someone types a question and gets an answer. That's Layer 1.

A Claw replaces entire workflows. Instead of one person checking email, responding to leads, updating the CRM, writing follow-ups, and generating reports — a Claw handles all of it. Autonomously. 24 hours a day.

At Parallax, we run a 19-agent Claw that manages operations, sales outreach, customer support, content creation, security monitoring, and financial analysis. Each agent is a specialist with deep domain knowledge and persistent memory of every interaction.

How to Deploy Your Own Claw

We've packaged our entire agent architecture into deployable bundles. You pick the agents you need, run a single install script, and your Claw is live in under 30 minutes.

No coding required. The install script handles everything — from installing the platform to configuring each agent's identity, tools, and schedule.

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