Hong Kong to launch world’s first governed AI agent network amid OpenClaw frenzy

Hong Kong is poised to launch the world’s first open-source human-AI agent collaboration network this week, along with a series of everyday artificial intelligence products to assist citizens with activities such as applying for schools and analysing horse racing.The Hong Kong Generative AI Research and Development Centre (HKGAI) said it would soon offer on an open-source basis a human-AI agent collaboration network named “ClawNet”, designed to ensure AI agents “only do things that are allowed”, according to a presentation by the centre on Monday.The HKGAI is a government-backed research hub established under the city’s InnoHK innovation programme and led by academics from the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST).Under the network’s proposed governance framework, AI agents would be assigned distinct “social identities” and operational boundaries.The push for clearer governance comes as Chinese regulators and state institutions have tightened controls on the open-source AI agent tool OpenClaw, citing concerns that such systems can gain unusually broad access to user devices and data.While humans would retain the power of authorisation and decision-making, AI agents could autonomously execute tasks and collaborate across the network within strictly defined limits, ensuring every action remained traceable, the HKGAI said.Currently, AI agents operated in silos, serving individual users without a broader social context, according to Zhang Yonggang, a research assistant professor at the HKUST, who spoke at the presentation on Monday.