The one story you should read today, selected by the editors of New York.
April 28, 2026
One thing you should know about tech columnist John Herrman’s piece on trying out the big new thing in AI — setting up an OpenClaw agent — is that it is very, very funny. This is more of an essay about the discomforts of living in the world with this technology than it is a story about a new software product. There’s a Samuel Beckett–like dark comedy to it all as John ponders the question of what he might want his (potentially dangerous) new digital assistant–chief of staff to actually do for him. OpenClaw, after all, was hailed by many in the tech world as one of the greatest innovations of our time, if not ever: an AI product that does real things in the real world — at least in theory — like an employee. But managing this tireless new digital servant ends up being a much greater challenge than John had imagined at the start of his journey.
—Jebediah Reed, editor, Intelligencer
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