"Raising lobster" has sparked heated discussions in China's AI community and become hot topics at the country's ongoing "two sessions" this year.
The term "raising lobster" originated from the open-source AI agent OpenClaw, which uses a red lobster as its icon.
It has become a buzzword adopted by Chinese users to describe the process of setting up and training this smart assistant.
OpenClaw, created by Austrian developer Peter Steinberger, is designed to allow large-language models to operate computers autonomously, controlling files, executing commands and interacting through messaging applications.
"In fact, such an AI agent has liberated us first and foremost. This liberation represents a significant technological advancement. I used to say that technology changes our way of working, but that still refers to a revolution in tools. When I see Openclaw, I could not predict whether it would ultimately endure. But when I know more about this model, my first impression is that it doesn't merely change our way of working, it transforms the very nature of work itself. That's a fundamental difference," said Wang Jian, a member of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference and an academician from the Chinese Academy of Engineering.
Many Chinese tech companies have since jumped on the trend, unleashing their own "lobsters." Tencent hatched QClaw, Minimax introduced MaxClaw, Moonshot AI unveiled KimiClaw, and Alibaba joined the feast with CoPaw.
Experts said the emergence of these AI agents enables ordinary people without coding backgrounds to develop usable apps in a short time.
"Now, more people have access to such AI tools and actively use them to genuinely enhance labor productivity across various fields. They can accomplish tasks that were previously impossible due to insufficient individual effort or resource investment," said Liu Qingfeng, a deputy to National People's Congress, China's top legislature.
But as enthusiasm grows, security concerns are becoming increasingly prominent, experts said.
In this February, China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology issued a warning that some OpenClaw-powered deployments carry high security risks when in default or improper configuration, making them highly susceptible to cyberattacks, information leakage, and other security issues.
AI agent OpenClaw becomes hot topic at China's "two sessions"
AI agent OpenClaw becomes hot topic at China's "two sessions"
AI agent OpenClaw becomes hot topic at China's "two sessions"
Uruguay's Ambassador to China Anibal Cabral said China's five-year plan should be examined closely as a "basic input" to understand how the world will develop when talking about the significance of China's "two sessions" in a recent interview with China Central Television.
The "two sessions," or the annual gatherings of the National People's Congress (NPC) and the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), are currently being held in Beijing. The draft outline of the 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-2030) for China's national economic and social development was submitted to the fourth session of the 14th NPC for review on March 5.
Cabral said Uruguay is paying close attention to the new five-year plan, highlighting the growing ties between the two countries. He shared his views about China's development blueprint and its global importance.
"China has been Uruguay's main trading partner for the past 14 years, both for exports and imports. Of course, since it is a planned economy with five-year plans, we are always very interested in studying them. In fact, many staff members at the Ministry of Economy asked me to obtain a copy of the five-year plan so they could study it. What can we see in the five-year plan? The modernization of China, the rejuvenation of its population, and its development. It includes some of the highest planned growth rates today -- around 5 percent. But above all, it also emphasizes the consolidation of its domestic market and internal economy. The growth of income among the Chinese population is very important, as it creates a consumer base for the entire world and a very advantageous market. We should also highlight the developments China has achieved in green economy," he said.
Cabral also stressed China's positive role in promoting global stability, suggesting that China's five-year plans are good references to studying future development trends.
"It is a very uncertain world, with many changes, but China provides us with stability. With China, Uruguay shares very important principles in the international arena, especially the promotion of multilateralism, respect for international rules, and compliance with the regulations of the World Trade Organization -- topics on which Uruguay and China share a vision. This vision is part of a broader goal of a more multipolar, more democratic world with stronger global governance. I believe that nowadays, because of China's importance, most economists, politicians and international analysts are studying the Chinese five-year plan and examining it closely as a basic input to understand how the world will develop in the next five years," said the ambassador.
Uruguay's Ambassador calls China's five-year plan "basic input" to understand future world development
