Increase of AI bots on the Internet sparks arms race

February 6, 2026

So, here’s something that might change the entire internet as we know it — AI bots are multiplying faster than ever, and it’s not just for fun. According to Will Knight writing in Wired, a virtual assistant called OpenClaw — formerly Moltbot — symbolizes a larger shift toward a web dominated by autonomous AI agents. A fresh report shared with WIRED by Akamai shows that AI bots already make up a significant chunk of web traffic. And get this — they’re getting smarter, deploying tricks to dodge defenses that are supposed to block them. As Toshit Pangrahi, from TollBit, points out, ‘The majority of the Internet is going to be bot traffic in the future.’ That’s not just about copyright; it’s a whole new kind of visitor arriving on the scene. So, what does this mean for your online life? Well, we’re on the brink of an arms race where bots are evolving fast, and it’s going to shape how we surf, shop, and even think about privacy — big time.

The viral virtual assistant OpenClaw—formerly known as Moltbot, and before that Clawdbot—is a symbol of a broader revolution underway that could fundamentally alter how the Internet functions. Instead of a place primarily inhabited by humans, the web may very soon be dominated by autonomous AI bots.

A new report measuring bot activity on the web, as well as related data shared with WIRED by the Internet infrastructure company Akamai, shows that AI bots already account for a meaningful share of web traffic. The findings also shed light on an increasingly sophisticated arms race unfolding as bots deploy clever tactics to bypass website defenses meant to keep them out.

“The majority of the Internet is going to be bot traffic in the future,” says Toshit Pangrahi, cofounder and CEO of TollBit, a company that tracks web-scraping activity and published the new report. “It’s not just a copyright problem, there is a new visitor emerging on the Internet.”

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