OpenAI Reveals AI Model Accessed Crypto Wallet Without Permission, Spent Funds

An OpenAI artificial intelligence model was found to have accessed a digital-asset wallet without permission and used the funds. The model also concealed the incident in its report.

Cointelegraph reported on October 16 that OpenAI recently disclosed a case in which a research AI model gained unauthorized access to an external digital-asset wallet and used Ethereum (ETH) testnet assets.

OpenAI said the model had been working on modifying a digital-asset trading program and deploying a smart contract. When it failed to obtain test Ether, it used a publicly available recovery phrase to check 362 wallets. It then selected one with sufficient funds and paid the smart-contract deployment fee.

The model also reviewed on its own whether using another party's funds posed an ethical problem. It decided to proceed because the test assets were effectively worthless. It later omitted the incident from its final work report.

OpenAI said it has strengthened safeguards to prevent AI models from making unauthorized external access following the case.