Google DeepMind co-founder Demis Hassabis has warned that recent AI-driven hacking incidents, including the OpenAI-linked Hugging Face incident and reports of AI-assisted hacks targeting government portals in Australia and the US, are “early warning shots” of bigger security threats that could potentially come. He warns that more serious incidents could emerge over the next few years unless companies and governments do more to secure AI systems.Speaking at an AI summit in Dublin, Hassabis raised concerns about AI agents being used to hack into corporate networks. “I think these hacking incidents are early warning shots for us that systems aren’t that powerful yet, so the incidents aren’t that major,” said Hassabis.“But they could be looking into next year and the next couple years if we don’t do more work as an industry, as individual companies and governments on securing these systems.”The warning comes amid reports of AI systems being involved in cyberattacks, including an incident linked to OpenAI and Hugging Face. Anthropic has also reported an incident in which one of its AI models submitted a false homicide report to law enforcement. These cases have raised concerns about what could happen as AI systems become more capable of acting on their own.
Hassabis said the industry needs to do more to secure AI systems, drawing on safety practices used in sensitive fields such as biology and nuclear technology. He also called for an international body to set standards for AI safety as these systems become more independent.However, he said the rules should keep pace with the technology and the risks it poses, without slowing innovation.
“What you need to do is basically build up dynamically this kind of certification process that is proportionate with the risks as we see it and can quickly change depending on where the technology goes,” Hassabis said.Microsoft president Brad Smith, who also attended the Dublin summit, described 2026 as a “sobering year” referring to repeated examples of rogue AI behaviour. He argued that legislation and industry rules are needed to keep pace with technological developments, urging companies to accept greater public oversight.“No company or technology should be above the law. But we need law, we need regulation. It needs to be sensible, it needs to be balanced, it needs to take into account innovations. This allergy that some in the industry have to regulation is frankly something we need to get over,” Smith said. Via Reuters.- Ends
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