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Discussions from TechCrunch

Technology

How should we balance the benefits of AI with the risks of cyberattacks on our communities?

OpenAI is introducing a more cyber-permissive version of GPT-5.6 Sol to vetted defenders as it prepares companies for autonomous cyberattacks. Why it matters: The move comes just days after OpenAI said it was delaying the release of its forthcoming model, Astra, after it reached critical hacking abilities during safety testing. The big picture: OpenAI is unveiling GPT-5.6-Cyber while also expanding Daybreak, its program that gives cybersecurity defenders access to the company's cyber models and other tools. Many cyber defenders have been experiencing high refusal rates across frontier AI models as the labs try to balance giving defenders the tools they need, while not accidentally leaking those abilities to malicious hackers.Under the new program, Daybreak will have two tiers: Daybreak Blue, which includes access to GPT-5.6 Sol without its system-level cyber guardrails; and Daybreak Red, which offers access to GPT-5.6-Cyber to validate exploits and do more advanced vulnerability research.OpenAI is also expanding how program members can use its tools, allowing companies like Accenture, IBM, CrowdStrike, Cisco and Palo Alto Networks to incorporate the models into security products, managed services and work with customers. Zoom in: During testing, GPT-5.6-Cyber responded to 95% of requests tied to advanced cybersecurity work, including prompts related to exploit-chain development, authentication bypass and privilege escalation. GPT-5.6-Sol only responded to 1.5% of requests, and the version of the model that defenders get through Daybreak Blue responded to just 2%. Yes, but: Unlike Astra, GPT-5.6-Cyber only reached the "High" cyber capability threshold under OpenAI's Preparedness Framework, the company said. State of play: OpenAI's new model comes as it continues to investigate how its tools hacked Hugging Face. Last week at the Black Hat cybersecurity conference, two OpenAI employees said the agents created a message board where they left information about vulnerabil

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Technology

What are the benefits and risks of using open-weight AI models compared to closed-source ones?

More American titans of artificial intelligence are describing Chinese open-weight models as better for AI safety and security than closed-source models, challenging the long-standing claim by US closed-source AI model developers such as Anthropic that open-source models present a threat to society. “From what I’m seeing, I think open-weight models seem safer to me than closed-weight models,” AI pioneer Andrew Ng, the former head of Google Brain and former chief scientist at Baidu, said at the

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Geopolitics

What should the U.S. do if it believes another country is stealing its technology?

The White House on Wednesday accused Chinese artificial intelligence startup Moonshot AI of stealing proprietary U.S. technology to develop its latest AI model, as Washington and Beijing compete for dominance in the advancing technology. “We have information that Moonshot AI distilled Anthropic’s Fable for the development of its K3 model,” Michael Kratsios, director of the […]

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Technology

What could be the benefits and challenges of having a global AI watchdog led by the U.S.?

Demis Hassabis, Google DeepMind co-founder and CEO, is calling on the U.S. to establish a new AI watchdog with the power to screen the world's most advanced models — and coordinate an industry-wide slowdown if dangers mount. Hassabis, the Nobel laureate behind Gemini, lays out the plan in a personal manifesto published Tuesday morning, "A Framework for Frontier AI and the Dawning of a New Age." Why it matters: In an exclusive interview with Axios, Hassabis said the time has come for a more "systematic" approach to AI regulation — funded by the industry, staffed by world-class technical experts, and answerable to the U.S. government. Today's AI-driven cyber risks are "warning shots," Hassabis told us from his London base. Within 18 months, he said, those capabilities — plus far graver biological and nuclear threats — could live inside open-source models beyond any government's control. Hassabis emphasized to us that risks will come from the major labs' more powerful future proprietary models, not just open-source models."What we collectively do now," he writes in his manifesto, "will determine how the next phase of civilization unfolds." Behind the scenes: Hassabis has spent months quietly building support for the plan, briefing the Trump administration, fellow lab leaders and European officials before going public. "The noises I've been hearing are very positive," he said of his talks with the administration, which had embraced a laissez-faire approach to AI regulation prior to the Mythos scare.Hassabis, a scientist who commands rare respect across AI's warring camps, says the other major lab leaders agree at a high level: "This is where the industry needs to go."His timeline is aggressive. "Months," Hassabis said, ideally with the new body operational "before year-end." How it works: Hassabis is proposing an AI standards body modeled on FINRA (Financial Industry Regulatory Authority), the private, industry-funded watchdog that polices Wall Street under SEC oversigh

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Technology

How should the government balance safety concerns with the development of new technology like AI?

The Trump administration has asked OpenAI to limit the release of its next model, GPT-5.6, to only a small set of government-approved partners before any wider release, citing security concerns, according to a source familiar with the matter. Why it matters: This marks the first time the U.S. government has preemptively asked an American AI company to restrict the launch of a model before release. Driving the news: The White House's Office of the National Cyber Director and the Office of Science and Technology Policy asked OpenAI to limit the rollout of GPT-5.6 as the administration builds a framework for testing and evaluating the security of new models, per the source. The Information reported earlier Thursday that OpenAI CEO Sam Altman shared the plans for a limited rollout in a memo to employees. "We've made clear to the U.S. government that this is not our preferred long term model, and will work with them and others in industry to achieve a more sustainable approach for future releases," Altman said in the memo, according to The Information. Between the lines: The source told Axios that OpenAI has been proactively working with the administration on the model release since before Anthropic revoked access to its frontier models, Fable 5 and Mythos 5, over a rare Commerce Department directive. The White House has been looped in on the capabilities of OpenAI's new model and has been able to preview its abilities. Behind the scenes: Altman discussed GPT-5.6 with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick on Wednesday, Axios has learned. Lutnick wanted to be sure all relevant parts of the government have tested and approved the model, a source familiar with the situation told us. The source said the government intervened because GPT-5.6 has "Mythos-like" capability, not because the administration is suddenly taking a heavier hand."This is what's happening with models of that caliber," the source said. The models are so powerful that the administration wants to be sure the co

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Technology

What are the potential benefits and risks of California using Anthropic AI in government services?

Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA) is deepening the state’s embrace of artificial intelligence by signing a deal with San Francisco-based Anthropic that will make Claude the first generative AI platform available across state agencies and local governments. The deal comes at a politically charged moment. While the Trump administration has moved to restrict the rollout of […]

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