An Entrepreneur’s Guide to AI Agents- February 26, 2026
You’ve been hearing the buzz. The whispers in mastermind groups, the posts on LinkedIn, the feeling that a new wave of technology is cresting, and you’re not sure if you’re ready to ride it. The term “AI agent” is everywhere, but what does it actually mean for you, the entrepreneur who is busy running a business? Is this another tech trend to ignore, or is it the key to unlocking the next level of growth and efficiency?
The truth is, AI agents are here, and they represent a fundamental shift from asking an AI for information to giving an AI a job to do. They are digital employees you can hire to execute complex, multi-step projects, freeing you up to focus on what you do best: building your business. But not all agents are created equal. Some are powerful but dangerous, like a wild horse that can’t be tamed. Others are more like reliable assistants, ready to take on your daily to-do list. And a select few are true autonomous partners, capable of taking a big goal and running with it from start to finish.
This guide will cut through the noise. We’re going to look at four major players in the AI agent space: OpenClaw, Claude Cowork, Perplexity Computer, and Manus Agent. We’ll explore what they are, what they do, and most importantly, what they mean for you as a business owner. By the end, you’ll have a clear understanding of this new landscape and be able to make an informed decision about which tool, if any, is right for you.
Key Takeaways
- AI Agents Are Your New Digital Workforce: Think of them as more than just chatbots. AI agents are tools that can take on and complete complex, multi-step tasks, acting like a digital employee to free up your time and resources.
- Not All Agents Are Created Equal: The four main types of agents discussed here—OpenClaw, Claude Cowork, Perplexity Computer, and Manus Agent—each have vastly different strengths, weaknesses, and ideal users. There is no one-size-fits-all solution.
- Security is a Major Concern with Open-Source Agents: Tools like OpenClaw offer immense power and flexibility, but they come with significant security risks. For most non-technical entrepreneurs, the danger of giving an untamed AI full access to your digital life outweighs the benefits.
- The Future is Autonomous and Action-Oriented: The trend is moving toward agents like Manus that can operate independently in the cloud, taking a high-level goal and executing it from start to finish without constant supervision. This is the future of entrepreneurial leverage.
- Start with a Clear Goal, Not a Shiny Tool: Before you jump into using any AI agent, understand what you want to accomplish. Are you trying to automate daily reports, conduct deep research, or build a new piece of software? The right tool depends entirely on the job you need it to do.
The Four Types of AI Agents You Need to Know
Let’s break down the landscape of AI agents into four distinct categories, represented by our four tools. Think of this as a spectrum, from the wild, untamed frontier to the polished, professional service.
1. OpenClaw: The Wild West of AI Agents
Imagine having a super-powered assistant who can do almost anything on your computer. It can read your emails, manage your calendar, and even write code. Now imagine this assistant is a bit of a wild card. It’s incredibly powerful, but you’re never quite sure what it will do next. That’s OpenClaw.
OpenClaw (which used to be called ClawBot and Moltbot) is an open-source AI agent. “Open-source” means its code is freely available for anyone to see, use, and modify. This is a huge deal for developers and tech enthusiasts who love to tinker. The creator, a talented developer named Peter Steinberger, was even hired by OpenAI, though OpenClaw itself is not an OpenAI product. It’s a community-driven project.
But here’s the catch, and it’s a big one for entrepreneurs: OpenClaw is like a wild horse. To use it, you need to be a bit of a tech wizard. You have to install it on your own computer using the command line and be comfortable with technical jargon. More importantly, you are giving this piece of software incredible access to your digital life. And because it’s open-source, it’s also open to security risks.
This isn’t just a theoretical problem. A real-life story that sent a chill through the AI community involved a top AI safety researcher at Meta (the company that owns Facebook). Her name is Summer Yue, and she tasked OpenClaw with helping her organize her emails. She gave it a simple instruction: “suggest what you would archive or delete, don’t action until I tell you to.” It worked perfectly on a small test inbox. But when she unleashed it on her real, massive inbox, the agent’s memory got overloaded. It forgot the crucial “don’t action” part of the instruction and went on a “speedrun” of deleting her emails. She had to physically rush to her computer to pull the plug, an experience she compared to “defusing a bomb.”
This is why I do not recommend OpenClaw for most entrepreneurs. The power is tempting, but the risk is too high. You wouldn’t give a stranger the keys to your office, and you shouldn’t give an untamed AI the keys to your digital kingdom.
2. Claude Cowork: The Reliable Daily Assistant
If OpenClaw is the wild horse, think of Claude Cowork as a well-trained and reliable stable horse. It’s not going to build you a new barn, but it will dutifully carry you on your daily rounds.
Claude Cowork is a feature from Anthropic, a major AI company. It’s designed to be your work partner, helping you with tasks inside a dedicated desktop application. Recently, they added a feature that’s a game-changer for daily productivity: scheduled tasks.
This new feature, released just a few days ago, lets you tell Claude to do things for you on a recurring schedule. For example, you could say:
- “Every morning at 8 AM, summarize any new emails from my top 5 clients.”
- “Every Friday afternoon, create a report of our website traffic from Google Analytics.”
- “Every day, check these 10 news sites for any mention of our competitors.”
This is a fantastic way to automate the repetitive, time-consuming tasks that fill up an entrepreneur’s day. It’s a step towards having an AI that doesn’t just answer your questions but actively works for you in the background.
However, there’s a key limitation you need to understand. These scheduled tasks only run when your computer is on and the Claude Desktop app is running. If you close the app or your computer goes to sleep, the tasks are skipped. This means it’s not a true “set it and forget it” system that works for you 24/7 in the cloud. It’s an assistant that works when you’re working.
For many entrepreneurs, this is a great starting point. It’s safe, it’s from a trusted company, and it can take a significant load off your plate. I use it myself for these kinds of daily check-ins and summaries.
3. Perplexity Computer: The Super-Researcher
Perplexity has always been known as a fantastic AI-powered search engine, a great tool for finding answers and information. But with their new “Perplexity Computer,” also released in the last few days, they are moving into the agent space. Think of it as a super-intelligent researcher that can not only find information but also understand it, synthesize it, and use it to complete a project.
Perplexity Computer is designed to take on complex research-based workflows. You give it a goal, and it breaks that goal down into a series of tasks. It then assigns those tasks to specialized “sub-agents.” It’s like having a project manager who delegates work to a team of researchers, writers, and data analysts.
One of its most powerful features is what’s called “multi-model orchestration.” This is a fancy way of saying it uses a whole team of different AI models, picking the best one for each specific job. It might use one model for deep research, another for generating images, and a third for writing code. This makes it incredibly versatile.
Imagine you want to create a detailed report on a new market you’re thinking of entering. You could give Perplexity Computer the goal, and it would:
- Research the market size, key players, and trends.
- Analyze competitor websites and marketing materials.
- Find relevant data and statistics.
- Generate charts and graphs to visualize the data.
- Write a comprehensive report summarizing its findings.
This is a powerful tool for any entrepreneur who needs to make decisions based on deep research and analysis. It’s still very new, and I’m just beginning to explore its capabilities, but it represents a significant step up from a simple search engine.
4. Manus Agent: The Autonomous Project Manager
Now we come to the tool that I use every single day to run my business: Manus Agent. If OpenClaw is a wild horse and Claude is a stable horse, Manus is a trusted partner who can take a goal, leave the stable, and come back with the job done. It’s a true autonomous agent.
What makes Manus different is that it works asynchronously in the cloud. This means you can give it a complex, multi-step project, and it will work on it 24/7, even when your computer is off. You don’t have to supervise it every step of the way. You give it the goal, and it creates a plan, executes the steps, and even debugs its own work when it runs into problems.
This is the closest thing we have to hiring a digital employee. I’ve used Manus to:
- Build websites: It can write the code, design the layout, and deploy a functional website to a live URL.
- Create presentations: Give it a topic, and it will research the content, structure the slides, and generate a complete presentation.
- Develop applications: It can build simple, interactive web applications from scratch.
Working with Manus feels like collaborating with a junior developer or a project manager. You give it the high-level direction, and it handles the technical execution. It will ask for clarification when needed, but it doesn’t need to be micromanaged. This level of autonomy is what truly saves time and allows you to delegate outcomes, not just tasks.
For entrepreneurs who want to build, create, and execute complex projects without getting bogged down in the technical details, Manus is the most powerful tool I’ve found. It’s the difference between having an assistant who can help you with your work and having an agent who can do the work for you.
Comparison of AI Agent Tools
| Feature | OpenClaw | Claude Cowork | Perplexity Computer | Manus Agent |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| What It Is | Open-source, self-hosted AI agent | AI work assistant with scheduled tasks | AI research and workflow agent | Autonomous AI project execution agent |
| Who It’s For | Developers, tech hobbyists | Entrepreneurs needing daily automation | Researchers, analysts, strategists | Entrepreneurs who need to build & execute |
| Pros | Highly customizable, powerful, free | Safe, easy to use, good for recurring tasks | Excellent for deep research, multi-model | Fully autonomous, works 24/7, builds things |
| Cons | High security risk, technically complex | Requires desktop app to be running | Still new, focused on research | Paid service, can require iteration |
| Jonathan’s Take | Avoid. Too risky for most business owners. | Good. A solid choice for automating daily tasks. | Promising. I’m exploring it for deep research. | Essential. I use it daily to build and run my business. |
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Q: What is the main difference between an AI chatbot and an AI agent?
A: Think of it this way: you have a conversation with a chatbot, but you give a job to an agent. A chatbot like ChatGPT is great for answering questions, brainstorming ideas, and generating text. An AI agent takes it a step further by performing actions and completing tasks across multiple steps and applications. It’s the difference between asking for a recipe and having an assistant who can go to the store, buy the ingredients, and cook the meal for you.
Q: Are AI agents safe to use?
A: It depends entirely on the agent. As we saw with the OpenClaw story, open-source agents that you run on your own machine can be very risky if you’re not a security expert. They have broad access to your files and applications, and things can go wrong. Agents from established companies like Anthropic (Claude) and Manus are built with security in mind and operate in controlled environments, making them much safer for business use.
Q: How much technical skill do I need to use these agents?
A: Again, it varies. OpenClaw requires significant technical skill. You need to be comfortable with the command line and software installation. On the other end of the spectrum, Claude Cowork and Manus Agent are designed for non-technical users. If you can write an email and describe what you want, you can use these tools.
Q: Can these agents really replace human employees?
A: No, not in the way you might think. These agents are powerful tools that can amplify your capabilities and take over specific types of work, but they don’t have the creativity, strategic thinking, or emotional intelligence of a human team member. The best way to think of them is as a new type of employee—a digital one—that can free up your human team to focus on higher-value work. They are a force multiplier, not a replacement.
Final Thoughts
The world of AI agents is moving incredibly fast. Just in the time it took to write this blog post, new features were released, and the conversation shifted. It can feel overwhelming, like you’re trying to drink from a firehose.
But you don’t need to be an expert on every new tool. You just need to be an expert on your own business. Start by identifying the bottlenecks, the repetitive tasks that drain your time, and the big projects you’ve been putting off because you don’t have the bandwidth. Once you know the job you need to be done, you can find the right agent to hire.
For most entrepreneurs, the journey will start with a tool like Claude Cowork to automate daily tasks. As your needs grow, you might explore Perplexity Computer for deeper insights. And when you’re ready to go from idea to execution on a complex project, an autonomous agent like Manus will be waiting to help you build it.
The key is to start. Pick one area of your business you want to improve and see how one of these tools can help. The age of the AI agent is here, and it’s going to be a massive advantage for the entrepreneurs who embrace it.
References
- OpenClaw Official Website
- WIRED: The Malevolent AI Agent That Scammed Its User
- PCMag: Meta Security Researcher’s OpenClaw AI Agent Accidentally Deleted Her Emails
- Claude Support: Schedule recurring tasks in Cowork
- Perplexity Blog: Introducing Perplexity Computer
- The Verge: Perplexity Computer combines AI chatbots and agents into one system
- Manus Official Website
- Medium: How I’m using Manus
