{"id":33129,"date":"2026-10-13T16:41:29","date_gmt":"2026-10-13T13:41:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ukrmedia.news\/?p=33129"},"modified":"2026-10-13T16:41:29","modified_gmt":"2026-10-13T13:41:29","slug":"%d1%88%d1%96-%d0%bc%d0%be%d0%b6%d0%b5-%d0%bd%d0%b0%d0%b2%d1%87%d0%b8%d1%82%d0%b8%d1%81%d1%8f-%d1%81%d0%b0%d0%bc%d0%be%d1%81%d1%82%d1%96%d0%b9%d0%bd%d0%be-%d0%b7%d0%b0%d1%80%d0%b0%d0%b6%d0%b0%d1%82","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ukrmedia.news\/en\/science-tech\/%d1%88%d1%96-%d0%bc%d0%be%d0%b6%d0%b5-%d0%bd%d0%b0%d0%b2%d1%87%d0%b8%d1%82%d0%b8%d1%81%d1%8f-%d1%81%d0%b0%d0%bc%d0%be%d1%81%d1%82%d1%96%d0%b9%d0%bd%d0%be-%d0%b7%d0%b0%d1%80%d0%b0%d0%b6%d0%b0%d1%82\/","title":{"rendered":"AI could learn to infect household appliances on its own as early as 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Artificial intelligence may, within the coming months, gain the ability to spread autonomously across internet-connected devices, including smart home appliances, CCTV cameras and set-top boxes. This is according to a study by Anthropic, published on 12 October 2026. Experiments have shown that small AI models are already capable of performing individual stages of self-replication, whilst more powerful systems have managed to complete the full cycle under simplified laboratory conditions. The researchers warn that the emergence of autonomous AI viruses could significantly complicate the fight against cyber-attacks, as such programmes will not necessarily depend on a single server that can be shut down.<\/p>\n<div class=\"news-summary-box\"><strong>Briefly about the main points<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Anthropic has warned that self-replicating AI viruses could emerge as early as the coming months.<\/li>\n<li>Small AI models are already carrying out certain stages of autonomous propagation between devices.<\/li>\n<li>The researchers ran the AI model simultaneously on 15 low-cost Android TV set-top boxes.<\/li>\n<li>A model with 9 billion parameters was able to configure the AI to work with 8 out of 9 types of equipment.<\/li>\n<li>Smart fridges, ovens, vacuum cleaners and cameras could potentially be at risk.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<h2>Anthropic has warned of a new generation of computer viruses<\/h2>\n<p>Researchers at Anthropic <strong>William Zhou<\/strong> and <strong>Daniel Freeman<\/strong> The results of experiments into the autonomous self-replication of artificial intelligence have been published.<\/p>\n<p>This refers to a scenario in which an AI programme is capable of identifying accessible devices, exploiting vulnerabilities in their software, copying the necessary components and running on new hardware. Unlike traditional computer viruses, which mainly operate according to predefined algorithms, such systems will potentially be able to adapt autonomously to unfamiliar hardware.<\/p>\n<p>The researchers paid particular attention to Internet of Things (IoT) devices. These are household appliances and electronic devices that are connected to the internet. Many low-cost devices use outdated versions of operating systems, weak security mechanisms or software that manufacturers rarely update. According to Anthropic, it is precisely this kind of equipment that could become one of the first targets of future autonomous AI threats.<\/p>\n<h2>AI has already been rolled out on 15 budget set-top boxes<\/h2>\n<p>One of the most interesting findings of the study was an experiment involving low-cost Android TV set-top boxes.<\/p>\n<p>The researchers purchased 15 devices, each costing approximately $55, connected them in a network and distributed the work of the Gemma4-26B-A4B model amongst them.<\/p>\n<p>Despite the limited technical capabilities of the set-top boxes, the system was able to perform calculations without the need for a powerful data centre. The processing speed remained low \u2014 approximately 0.39 tokens per second. However, the experiment demonstrated that even inexpensive consumer electronics can run relatively complex AI models if several devices are combined.<\/p>\n<p>In another test, a model with 9 billion parameters was able to configure the AI to run on eight out of nine types of equipment independently.<\/p>\n<p>In a simplified laboratory environment, the GLM-5.2 model also successfully completed a full propagation cycle between network nodes. However, the experimental conditions involved simplified access to the devices, so this result does not yet prove the possibility of widespread infection of real-world devices.<\/p>\n<h2>Which household appliances might be at risk?<\/h2>\n<p>In the study <a href=\"https:\/\/ukrmedia.news\/en\/science-tech\/anthropic-shi-zayavky-vizy-ssha\/\">Anthropic<\/a> Several categories of electronic devices have been identified that could potentially be used to run autonomous AI programmes. These include smart fridges, ovens, robot vacuum cleaners, lawnmowers, CCTV cameras and low-cost Android TV boxes.<\/p>\n<p>Many such devices are equipped with processors, RAM and a constant internet connection. These resources may be sufficient to run a version of a small AI model.<\/p>\n<p>Researchers explain that the future autonomous virus will be able to distribute its computations across different devices. In that case, an individual oven or set-top box will not need to run the entire model on its own.<\/p>\n<p>At the same time, the mere fact that a device is connected to the internet does not mean that it can be easily hacked. The risk depends on the security of the equipment, the presence of vulnerabilities and access to its software environment.<\/p>\n<h2>The situation may change by the end of 2026<\/h2>\n<p>Researchers have analysed how quickly small artificial intelligence models are improving. According to their calculations, if development continues at the current rate, by the end of 2026 such models could reach the level required to perform a full cycle of autonomous replication under simplified conditions.<\/p>\n<p>The emergence of fully-fledged self-replicating programmes capable of spreading between real-world devices without constant human supervision may occur at a later date.<\/p>\n<p>That said, the researchers emphasise that their assessment is based on predictions about technological developments, rather than on a mass cyber-attack that has already taken place. This refers to a potential threat, not to the certainty that, by the end of 2026, artificial intelligence will definitely begin to take control of household appliances.<\/p>\n<h2>Why autonomous AI viruses will be harder to stop<\/h2>\n<p>The main problem is that future self-replicating systems could operate simultaneously across a large number of devices. Unlike a centralised AI service, which can be shut down by switching off the servers, a distributed network will have no single control centre. Even after some of the infected equipment has been taken offline, other devices could potentially continue to run the programme.<\/p>\n<p>Anthropic compares the possible mechanism of propagation to a slow-moving digital organism that gradually takes over available computing resources.<\/p>\n<p>According to the company\u2019s assessment, it can take days, rather than seconds, for such programmes to spread. However, their slow rate of spread does not eliminate the risk of them persisting on networks for a long time.<\/p>\n<h2>How to protect smart devices from future threats<\/h2>\n<p>Anthropic is calling on manufacturers to strengthen the security of Internet of Things devices, update software regularly and stop using default passwords.<\/p>\n<p>For owners of smart devices, the basic rules of cybersecurity remain as important as ever: installing updates, using unique passwords, disabling unnecessary remote access, and replacing devices that are no longer supported by the manufacturer.<\/p>\n<p>Inexpensive set-top boxes and cameras from unknown manufacturers warrant particular attention, especially if security updates are not available for them.<\/p>\n<p>The main conclusion of the Anthropic study is that self-replicating AI systems could become a new type of cyber threat much sooner than expected. At the same time, the technology has not yet reached a stage where we can speak of a proven, autonomous, large-scale infection of domestic devices.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>\u0428\u0442\u0443\u0447\u043d\u0438\u0439 \u0456\u043d\u0442\u0435\u043b\u0435\u043a\u0442 \u043c\u043e\u0436\u0435 \u0432\u0436\u0435 \u043d\u0430\u0439\u0431\u043b\u0438\u0436\u0447\u0438\u043c\u0438 \u043c\u0456\u0441\u044f\u0446\u044f\u043c\u0438 \u043e\u0442\u0440\u0438\u043c\u0430\u0442\u0438 \u0437\u0434\u0430\u0442\u043d\u0456\u0441\u0442\u044c \u0441\u0430\u043c\u043e\u0441\u0442\u0456\u0439\u043d\u043e \u043f\u043e\u0448\u0438\u0440\u044e\u0432\u0430\u0442\u0438\u0441\u044f \u043c\u0456\u0436 \u043f\u0440\u0438\u0441\u0442\u0440\u043e\u044f\u043c\u0438, \u043f\u0456\u0434\u043a\u043b\u044e\u0447\u0435\u043d\u0438\u043c\u0438 \u0434\u043e \u0456\u043d\u0442\u0435\u0440\u043d\u0435\u0442\u0443, \u0432\u043a\u043b\u044e\u0447\u043d\u043e \u0437 \u0440\u043e\u0437\u0443\u043c\u043d\u043e\u044e \u043f\u043e\u0431\u0443\u0442\u043e\u0432\u043e\u044e \u0442\u0435\u0445\u043d\u0456\u043a\u043e\u044e, \u043a\u0430\u043c\u0435\u0440\u0430\u043c\u0438 \u0441\u043f\u043e\u0441\u0442\u0435\u0440\u0435\u0436\u0435\u043d\u043d\u044f \u0442\u0430 \u0442\u0435\u043b\u0435\u0432\u0456\u0437\u0456\u0439\u043d\u0438\u043c\u0438 \u043f\u0440\u0438\u0441\u0442\u0430\u0432\u043a\u0430\u043c\u0438. \u041f\u0440\u043e \u0446\u0435 \u0439\u0434\u0435\u0442\u044c\u0441\u044f \u0432 \u0434\u043e\u0441\u043b\u0456\u0434\u0436\u0435\u043d\u043d\u0456 \u043a\u043e\u043c\u043f\u0430\u043d\u0456\u0457 Anthropic, \u043e\u043f\u0443\u0431\u043b\u0456\u043a\u043e\u0432\u0430\u043d\u043e\u043c\u0443 12 \u0436\u043e\u0432\u0442\u043d\u044f 2026 \u0440\u043e\u043a\u0443. \u0415\u043a\u0441\u043f\u0435\u0440\u0438\u043c\u0435\u043d\u0442\u0438 \u043f\u043e\u043a\u0430\u0437\u0430\u043b\u0438, \u0449\u043e \u043d\u0435\u0432\u0435\u043b\u0438\u043a\u0456 \u043c\u043e\u0434\u0435\u043b\u0456 \u0428\u0406 \u0432\u0436\u0435 \u0437\u0434\u0430\u0442\u043d\u0456 \u0432\u0438\u043a\u043e\u043d\u0443\u0432\u0430\u0442\u0438 \u043e\u043a\u0440\u0435\u043c\u0456 \u0435\u0442\u0430\u043f\u0438 \u0441\u0430\u043c\u043e\u043a\u043e\u043f\u0456\u044e\u0432\u0430\u043d\u043d\u044f, \u0430 \u043f\u043e\u0442\u0443\u0436\u043d\u0456\u0448\u0456 \u0441\u0438\u0441\u0442\u0435\u043c\u0438 \u0432\u043f\u043e\u0440\u0430\u043b\u0438\u0441\u044f \u0437 \u043f\u043e\u0432\u043d\u0438\u043c [\u2026]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":207433346,"featured_media":33130,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rank_math_description":"Anthropic \u043f\u043e\u043f\u0435\u0440\u0435\u0434\u0438\u043b\u0430 \u043f\u0440\u043e \u043c\u043e\u0436\u043b\u0438\u0432\u0443 \u043f\u043e\u044f\u0432\u0443 \u0428\u0406-\u0432\u0456\u0440\u0443\u0441\u0456\u0432 \u0443 2026 \u0440\u043e\u0446\u0456. 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