He did the art but the idea behind it was Melinda Gates. She wanted to make computers approachable to people who had never used a computer. Microsoft Bob was the result and Clippy was the remnant of Bob.

That's why I have a small problem with Rossman using Clippy. Rossman's idea is good but Clippy represents helping people use a computer for the very first time. There was no anti consumer late stage capitalism in Clippy. It popped up in a corner so if you had never used a computer it would catch your attention. You didn't have to use it. You could turn it off permanently with a single click.

If the Linux man command had a logo, it would be like co opting that logo to represent anti consumer practices. The man command is there to help when you don't know what to do.