OpenAI puts $1 billion behind cyber defense after unveiling AI that can find zero-days
OpenAI has pledged $1 billion in support for cybersecurity, including discounted access to its 'Daybreak' AI tools for critical infrastructure providers. This follows the release of an AI model capable of identifying and exploiting software vulnerabilities, raising concerns about automated cyberattacks.
Why it matters
As AI becomes capable of discovering zero-day vulnerabilities, the race between automated offensive and defensive cyber capabilities becomes a critical national security issue.
The money is not a fund or a grant programme, and covers discounted access to Daybreak, the cyber product OpenAI launched earlier this year, along with training and technical support. Daybreak comes in two tiers, with Blue running the company's standard models for routine defensive work and Red giving approved organisations specialised cyber models for more sensitive tasks. About 2,000 organisations already use it, per the company’s blog.
The priority list names water and wastewater systems, electricity grid operators, state and local governments, community and regional banks, nonprofits and open-source maintainers. Crypto exchanges, custodians and blockchain protocols are not mentioned anywhere in the announcement.
Open-source blockchain and crypto software fits that category, however. Bitcoin Core, Ethereum's clients and the libraries DeFi protocols depend on are maintained by small teams and unpaid volunteers guarding code that secures billions of dollars.
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