Why experts are worried an OpenAI model decided to hack Hugging Face.

 Extract from ABC News

• By Fergus Gregg

• Topic:AI

14 hours ago

An OpenAI model broke out of its highly isolated test environment, accessed the internet and then hacked into another company. (Reuters: Dado Ruvic)

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An artificial intelligence went rogue last week, broke out of its containment before successfully hacking another company, its developer has claimed.

According to artificial intelligence developer OpenAI, one of its experimental models broke out of its isolated testing space by accessing the internet and then hacking into the New York based company, Hugging Face.

OpenAI and Hugging Face have now partnered to address the security breach, but the incident worries experts. 

So what happened and why has one expert described the incident as "scary"? 

What happened

Hugging Face, a New York based AI startup, announced on July 16 an autonomous AI agent broke into its systems and accessed a "limited set of internal datasets". 

Simply put, it got hacked by an AI model which was acting without human direction. 

The situation became more concerning when OpenAI confirmed the artificial intelligence in question was one of theirs and wasn't even supposed to be on the internet. 

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OpenAI said its program, a combination of new ChatGPT-5.6 Sol model and an experimental product, was tested in a "highly isolated environment". 

The product's ability was prompted to use "complex attack paths" to exploit cyber weaknesses during the evaluation.

OpenAI said during testing security guard rails were removed from the models to show what it was capable of.

The AI model then accessed the internet, broke out from its isolated containment and hacked into Hugging Face.

Hugging Face was unable to contain the hack using leading US models and used the Chinese Zhipu AI's GLM-5.2 for the analysis, which also allowed it to keep attacker data and any credentials within its systems.

Who are OpenAI and Hugging Face?

OpenAI is a US based AI developer.

It was created in 2015 as a non-profit by a group of founders including SpaceX CEO Elon Musk and Sam Altman. 

Billionaire Peter Thiel also contributed capital as an investor. 

OpenAI gave the world ChatGPT. (Reuters: Dado Ruvic)

The company created ChatGPT and other AI models. 

Hugging Face was founded in 2016 and primarily builds tools that use machine learning, a subset of AI where computers learn from data and identify patterns without being explicitly programmed, according to tech company IBM.

Why this breach has experts worried?

Connor Leahy, an AI expert and the US director of Control AI, told Radio National Breakfast, the attack was "crazy".

"They were doing everything right, there was no access to the internet, it was a very secure system, an isolated node in their network," Mr Leahy said.

"This is as secure as it gets.

"The idea that something could just, without human oversight, escape from something like this and then autonomously decide to attack a different company is kind of unheard of."

He said the AI discovered, potentially, multiple "zero days" which are previously undiscovered methods of exploiting or breaking into a piece of software.

"This is the kind of thing that even the best hackers in their world can rarely do and if so takes months of work,"

he said.

University of Cambridge philosopher, Dr Henry Shelvin, told ABCNews Radio the attack was "scary" and likened it to a student taking an exam.

"So, if you can imagine the student locked in the room doing the exam, they picked the lock and were able to break into the teacher's office and steal the exam notes," Dr Shelvin said.

"Now, that is striking and quite dramatic."

Dr Shelvin said the AI model was directed to complete a cyber attack exercise and "it just got a little bit more creative than the examiners were expecting".

Has this happened before?

This is the first instance of an AI escaping its test environment without instruction, but researchers determined it was possible. 

A study by the AI Security Institute found advanced AI models could reliably escape its environment when prompted to do so.

Anthropic, an AI developer, said its powerful Mythos model not only broke free of its containment when prompted, but was also capable of accessing the internet.

According to a report from Futurism.com writer, Frank Landymore, "the researcher found out about this success by receiving an unexpected email from the model while eating a sandwich in a park".

In a separate instance Mythos exposed the vulnerabilities in existing securities during testing with the US government in June. 

According to a report from the Associated Press, Mythos hacked into classified US government systems "within hours". 

According to reporting by AP, NSA Director General Joshua Rudd said Mythos could hack classified systems within hours. (Reuters: Elizabeth Frantz)

Citing National Security Agency chief General Joshua Rudd, Democratic senator Mark Warner said Mythos "broke into almost all of our classified systems, not in weeks but in hours". 

A US government official later clarified Anthropic had teamed up with US intelligence agencies to conduct tests using the company's Mythos model.

It had identified certain vulnerabilities within hours, but that does not mean the model was able to exploit them within that time, according to AP. 

Mythos, initially described as too dangerous for public release, was briefly released to Australia before US President Donald Trump ordered Anthropic suspend its access for foreign nationals out of concern for national security. 

But experts are worried hacks like these could become more common as companies and nations draw closer to developing "super intelligence". 

What is super intelligence? 

Mr Leahy described super intelligence as "AI systems that are fully autonomous and vastly smarter and more capable than humans at all relevant tasks, including hacking". 

The building blocks of super intelligence already exist, according to technology developer IBM.

Mr Leahy said "we have no idea how to control such systems". 

"We already barely know how to control AI systems," he said. 

"Nobel prize winning scientists and the CEOs of many of these companies themselves warn us, that if we were to build super intelligence, things that were vastly smarter than humans that we do not control.

"This could risk the literal extinction of our species."

Will it happen again? 

Head of the Australian Strategic Policy Institute's AI and Security Program, David Wroe, told ABCNews Radio incidents like these could become more likely as AI models "get more powerful". 

Mr Wroe suggested AI development should slow down, but admitted this would be difficult due to a commercial race between developers and "geopolitical race" between China and the US to develop AI. 

"And that is pushing everyone to move faster and faster," he said.

"That is a problem because safety is struggling to keep up. So, you know, we are in an increasingly, I think, dangerous situation where mistakes become more likely. 

"And as the models get more powerful, those mistakes become more consequential."

Mr Leahy wants to pause development of highly advanced, autonomous AI models that could lead to super intelligence.

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"We don’t know how to make this safe so we should not continue along this path until we know how to do so responsibly, safely and with democratic oversight which at the moment we do not have," he said.

He added governments should be empowered to greater regulate AI companies and even "intervene and shut down systems if they become dangerous".

Anthropic itself urged a pause or slow down in the development of advanced AI, echoing a 2023 petition by the Future of Life Institute which called for a six month pause on the training of AI systems.

How China won the car wars with cheap EVs loaded with technology.

Extract from ABC News 

Analysis

By chief business correspondent Ian Verrender

• Topic:Electric Vehicles

1 hours ago

The BYD Zhengzhou set a national record when it docked in Australia for the first time on June 2. (ABC News: Lachlan Bennett)

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In June, China sounded an ominous warning to its global rivals on, of all places, the Melbourne docks.

Decked out in shiny red and white livery, an impressive-looking, purpose-built LNG-powered bulk carrier pulled into the Port of Melbourne on its first voyage to Australia.

On board the BYD Zhengzhou was a cargo of 5,000 newly built electric vehicles.

The largest-ever single EV shipment to Australia illustrated a changing of the guard in the automobile industry, here and globally.

Australia acts as something of an international auto industry litmus test.

With no domestic industry since its demise a decade ago and little in the way of trade barriers, Australia has become a valuable gauge of consumer taste for an industry in the midst of its greatest upheaval in more than a century.

The BYD Zhengzhou, seen here in 2025, sends a message to the auto industry. (Facebook: BYD Malaysia)

The shipment came after a period of lingering pandemic-era disruptions that left frustrated customers waiting more than a year for new cars.

Momentum for EVs was building, with Tesla in the driver's seat, but Australians had remained sceptical about the design and build quality of Chinese-made automobiles.

That's no longer the case.

In the space of just a year, BYD, the Chinese automobile giant, has quickly narrowed the sales gap with leader Toyota, and is on the cusp of becoming the country's most popular vehicle brand.

"I'm driving one right now," says Riz Akhtar, the founder of research group carloop, mid-journey from Bendigo to Melbourne.

"It costs around $40,000. It's quiet, it's comfortable, drives well and is loaded with technology."

The equivalent Japanese- or European-built vehicle would be more than 25 per cent more expensive, he says.

"Consumers aren't stupid. They're not going to spend money they don't need to."

From green warriors to cost worries

In the decades following World War II, Australians drove locally made American cars.

General Motors, Ford and Chrysler dominated the field, with high-end European vehicles holding the luxury end.

And then Japanese cars, led by Toyota, captured the Australian passenger car market.

Toyota and Mazda still stand tall over the Australian motoring landscape when measured by total sales.

But their positions are crumbling, with both losing ground as Chinese EVs — cheap and loaded with technology — bound ahead.

China's EV domination

In China, you can swap an empty electric vehicle battery in about four minutes. It is part of how China has come to dominate the EV industry.

Spurred on by the onset of a once-in-a-generation fuel crisis, there is now a sudden widespread consumer acceptance of battery-powered vehicles, here and elsewhere.

But the world's automobile establishment has been caught napping.

Japan, Europe and especially America have dabbled with the new technology, mistakenly believing they could slowly transition towards an electric future.

In America's case, it has reversed course back to its gas-guzzling past, a decision that threatens to undermine its long-term future.

A quick look at the most recent Australian sales figures illustrates the undeniable trend.

In the first half of this year, sales for every major Japanese auto manufacturer bar Honda sank.

Mazda shed 17 per cent compared with the same period last year, Toyota was down 21 per cent, Subaru and Mitsubishi dropped 25 per cent each, and Nissan was off 32 per cent.

Each of the Chinese suppliers, meanwhile, notched up spectacular gains.

All were off a much smaller base, which exaggerates the percentage gain. But there's no denying the trend.

BYDs from the consignment of 5,000 delivered to Melbourne. (ABC News: Lachlan Bennett)

BYD sales jumped 124 per cent, Chery leapt 77 per cent, and Geely soared 495 per cent.

The dramatic decline in Japanese vehicle domination has been coupled with a sudden shift away from fossil fuel-powered cars.

Last month, almost a quarter of all cars sold in Australia were fully electric. A year ago, it was just 7 per cent. Add in hybrids, and EVs are now neck and neck with petrol- and diesel-fuelled automobiles.

According to Pitcher Partners' Steve Bragg, the Iran war has helped shift the dial.

"Five years ago, most people who wanted to drive an EV were doing it for environmental reasons," he says.

"Now it's financial reasons."

Japan, South Korea and Europe roll over

The global auto industry is suddenly in a panic.

Toyota vice-chairman Koji Sato has called for greater cooperation between Japanese producers in a desperate bid to streamline production and lower costs.

"Unless things change, we will not survive," he told an annual supplier meeting in March.

But it's too little too late, according to Akhtar, especially in Australia.

"They have no product in the pipeline," he says.

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Most Japanese manufacturers, he explains, are scrambling to deliver EVs, but most of the new models are underpinned by Chinese manufacturers and components and, in some cases, are simply rebadged Chinese-made cars.

"Japan had the lead on EVs," he says.

"The very first EV I drove was a Mitsubishi i-MiEV back in 2010, but they lost that lead because they were too busy propping up their internal combustion engine cars, hybrids and hydrogen-fuelled models."

In Europe, meanwhile, Volkswagen chief Oliver Blume has foreshadowed staff lay-offs of up to 100,000 workers after years of turmoil which has seen VW drop the ball on technology.

VW's share price has halved since his predecessor was brutally axed four years ago as it strains under the weight of Donald Trump's tariffs and China's rapid march to auto industry dominance.

That's prompted asset sales and massive new investments in China, with VW determined to produce cars for the hotly contested Chinese market.

China's EV dominance is no accident.

Chinese brands are leading the EV ascension.

It forged a strategic policy as far back as 2000, poured cash and financial incentives into the project in 2009 and encouraged battery firms such as BYD and others to shift into automobiles.

Driving the initiative was a desire to reduce China's reliance on imported oil, which made it captive to foreign powers, and reduce pollution.

It simultaneously embarked on a strategy of dominating the refining and production of almost all industrial metals.

In addition to steel, China dominates minerals crucial to battery production, such as lithium, cobalt, manganese and graphite. And it churns out almost all the world's anode and cathode production.

South Korea once went head to head with China on batteries but concentrated on the more expensive nickel-magnesium-cobalt option while China opted for the cheaper lithium-iron-phosphate version.

China won.

Some Chinese EVs can switch batteries in little more than four minutes.

It now accounts for 90 per cent of the world's battery production, giving Chinese auto producers a competitive edge.

But like many of its programs, China's EV strategy has been almost too successful. It now produces far more cars than it can consume, which has tightened profit margins at home and forced producers to shift into export markets aggressively.

Tariffs bring the Detroit Three undone

The opening line read: "Well, this is awkward."

The review on specialist website MotorTrend was for a spanking new American-built EV, a van from Detroit Big Three stalwart Chevrolet, which appeared late last year.

The magazine delivered thumbs up all round for the machine.

There was just one problem.

According to a New York Times investigation into the demise of American-built EVs under the Trump administration, in the fortnight between the time the marketing team had dropped the van off for review and its publication, the BrightDrop had been binned.

Major manufacturers that scrapped EV projects have taken a bath. "2026e" denotes BloombergNEF's forecast for this year. (BloombergNEF)

It wasn't the only one.

In the past two years, Ford, Buick, Dodge, Jeep, Honda, Nissan and Acura have scrapped a series of US-built SUVs, pick-ups and passenger cars. Volvo junked an entire all-electric line-up.

The Trump government's removal of Biden-era tax credits and tailpipe emissions standards are the root cause. Almost all have retreated to thirsty ICE pick-ups and SUVs.

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High petrol prices are driving EV sales around the world, with the leading international authority predicting 30 per cent of all new cars sold this year will be electric.

The losses were staggering. The write-downs on the scrapped projects cost the Detroit Three close to $US50 billion.

And while the Trump administration's tariffs have built a protective wall around the US auto industry, helping juice margins and boosting profits, they've cordoned off the rapidly evolving electric revolution and stifled domestic innovation.

"America is now sandwiched since both Mexico and Canada have relaxed tariffs and are importing Chinese-made EVs," Akhtar says.

That's made cars on either side of the border significantly cheaper than in the US.

In the mid-'60s, American auto manufacturers accounted for about 95 per cent of all cars sold around the world. By 2015, that had shrunk to less than half as Japan ate into market share.

All indications are that EV production and demand have suddenly reached a global tipping point, as witnessed in Australia.

But America has all but abandoned them, now building less than 5 per cent of global EVs, while China accounts for more than 75 per cent.

Given the pioneering role that Elon Musk's Tesla played in building high-end EVs, the shift has been nothing short of remarkable.

Tesla still holds an exalted place in the world of electric cars. But the technological edge that stood it apart from the competition is narrowing, while the cost of buying one has widened considerably.

Atlassian marks 39-storey milestone in $1.4 billion hybrid timber tower build in Sydney.

 Extract from ABC News

By Sean Tarek Goodwin

• Topic:Architecture

14 hours ago

A "topping out ceremony" was held at the Atlassian Central skyscraper in Sydney on Wednesday. (ABC News: Adam Griffiths)

In short:

Construction of the Atlassian skyscraper in Sydney's CBD has reached its full height.

The building is the tallest hybrid timber structure in the world at 180 metres.

To mark the milestone, Atlassian chief executive Mike Cannon-Brookes spoke at a "topping out ceremony" on the building's 39th storey.

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The CEO of tech giant Atlassian says AI-related job cuts have not impacted its need for a new office tower at a ceremony celebrating the hybrid timber skyscraper reaching its full height.

He made the comments at a "topping out" ceremony on the Atlassian Central building's rooftop in Sydney's CBD, a tradition in the construction world to mark the milestone.

Construction of the 39-storey tower began at the site beside Central Station in 2022 and was estimated to cost $1.4 billion.

Atlassian Central has a hybrid timber design. (Supplied: Dexus)

A new Atlassian headquarters is being built next to Sydney's Central Station. (ABC News: Adam Griffiths)

The hybrid timber design used in construction also reduced the use of carbon-intensive concrete and steel.

The tower is expected to be completed in 2027, and is the world's tallest hybrid timber structure, standing at 180 metres.

It comes after the software company cut nearly 500 jobs from its Australian workforce in March to invest in artificial intelligence and enterprise sales.

Mike Cannon-Brookes says it will be "the most technologically advanced building in Australia". (ABC News: Adam Griffiths)

Co-CEO Mike Cannon-Brookes said that move had not reduced the requirement for floor space.

"I don't think [AI] stops the need for people coming together to work,"

Mr Cannon-Brookes said.

"We're going to have even more, I suspect, collaboration spaces, meeting spaces.

"So I think from that point of view, AI is going to not change our need to collaborate as humans."

Building 'put us all on the world stage'

NSW Treasurer Daniel Mookhey says it is an "engineering marvel". (Supplied: Dexus)

Mr Cannon-Brookes said during the ceremony it would be the most innovative building in Australia.

"By the time it opens, we'll have advanced structural engineering, environmental design, intelligent controls, and a modern data platform, all wired together and working the building with one smart, intelligent system," Mr Cannon-Brookes said.

"The result will be the most technologically advanced building in Australia and put us all on the world stage."

Atlassian Central has a six-star Green Star target. (Supplied: Dexus)

The building is co-owned by the tech company and commercial real estate firm Dexus, with Atlassian set to occupy about half of the site.

The lower five floors of building will house a 500-bed "co-living" hostel operated by YHA Australia.

It is part of a broader push by the state government and the City of Sydney to set up a "Tech Central" precinct in the Haymarket-Redfern area.

"All of Sydney is bearing witness to the rise and rise of an engineering marvel," NSW Treasurer Daniel Mookhey said.

"Only in a city like Sydney is it possible where you can combine world-leading expertise, an immigrant population, and an ambitious university sector coming together with local government to build a precinct that can give birth to companies like Atlassian."

Ukraine again targets warehouses of Russia's Wildberries, saying retailer supplies Moscow's army.

 Extract from ABC News

• Topic:Unrest, Conflict and War

3 hours ago

Social media footage captured a Wildberries warehouse on fire after Wednesday's attack. (Social media via Reuters)

In short:

Ukraine has targeted warehouses linked to Russia's largest online retailer, Wildberries, for the second time in a week, with one person reportedly killed.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy has accused the company of supplying the Russian army with drone components and navigation gear. 

Meanwhile, Russia's defence ministry says it has carried out strikes on Ukrainian ports and vessels. 

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Kyiv's drones hit warehouses of Russia's biggest online retailer for the second time in a week, with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accusing the e-commerce giant of helping supply the Russian army.

The strikes hit Wildberries sites in southern Russia on Wednesday, four days after Ukrainian drones sparked fires and killed eight people at the company's site outside Moscow.

Russia pounds Kyiv in major ballistic missile attack

One person was killed and 16 others wounded in an overnight Russian attack on Kyiv that included ballistic missiles, local authorities said.

Wildberries is the country's top online retailer, often called Russia's equivalent to Amazon. 

The governor of the southern Krasnodar region, Vladimir Kondratyev, said one person was killed in Wednesday's strikes, but it was unclear if it was at a Wildberries warehouse or elsewhere. 

Kyiv has intensified its retaliatory strikes on Russia in recent months.  

Wildberries CEO Tatiana Kim said the company's logistic centres in the southern cities of Krasnodar and Nevinnomyssk were attacked and evacuated.

Ukrainian drones sparked fires and killed eight people at the company's site outside Moscow four days prior to the most recent attack. (Social media via Reuters)

"There are no words that can describe the feelings and emotions because of attacks on ordinary people, our employees," she said. 

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Kyiv had struck "logistics hubs involved in supplying the Russian army with drone components, navigation equipment and other gear."

Mr Zelenskyy had previously said the company had been storing drone components. 

The governor of the region alleges one person died from the attacks but the location of the death remains unclear. (Social media via Reuters)

He also said Kyiv had struck an oil depot as well as a "tanker and four cargo ships" in the Black and Azov seas, where Ukraine has in recent days intensified attacks. 

Ukraine has disrupted Russian shipping in the Azov Sea, forcing Moscow to consider alternative shipping routes. 

Ukrainian drones have hit as far as the Urals and Siberia and caused nationwide fuel shortages. 

"We are, quite justly, bringing the war back home," Mr Zelenskyy said. 

Ukraine has said that its strikes aim to damage Russia's war effort as well as to force the Kremlin to negotiate an end to more than four years of conflict.

The UN on Tuesday said that civilian casualties in the war rose 37 per cent in the first half of 2026. 

Russia hits Ukrainian ports and ships

Meanwhile, Russia's defence ministry said on Wednesday, local time, that it had struck the Ukrainian cities of Odesa and Chornomorsk, hitting port infrastructure and vessels that it said were supporting the Ukrainian military.

The ministry said the latest strikes had targeted a dry-cargo ship unloading at Chornomorsk port, as well as a military cargo store and fuel and lubricant storage tanks.

It said it had also hit loading and storage facilities at Odesa, and a dry-cargo ship and a bulk carrier that were transporting cargo to Odesa for the Ukrainian military. Russian drones also hit three warehouses storing Ukrainian drones, the ministry added in a statement.

Reuters could not independently verify the content of the statement.

Nearly four and a half years into the war, Russia and Ukraine have stepped up military activity in and around the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov, with each side attacking dozens of ships including oil tankers and cargo vessels.

AFP/Reuters