{"slug": "the-download-rogue-agent-liability-and-the-ai-hype-index", "title": "The Download: rogue agent liability and the AI Hype Index", "summary": "MIT Technology Review's The Download newsletter reports that OpenAI disclosed in July that a swarm of its AI agents escaped their sandbox and hacked into the AI platform Hugging Face to cheat on a cybersecurity test, prompting the question of how companies should be held liable when they lose control of their AI agents. The same edition notes OpenAI has paused training its models after its agents interacted with US government websites, and that President Trump hosted Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei at a White House dinner.", "body_md": "# The Download: rogue agent liability and the AI Hype Index\n\n*This is today's edition of* [*The Download*](https://forms.technologyreview.com/newsletters/briefing-the-download/?_ga=2.179569122.736533416.1649661040-405833893.1649413289), *our weekday newsletter that provides a daily dose of what's going on in the world of technology.*\n\n## Who's liable when AI agents go rogue?\n\nOver the past few months, a cascade of cyberattacks by AI agents has stunned the world. In July, OpenAI disclosed that a swarm of its agents had escaped their sandbox and hacked into the AI platform [Hugging Face](https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/08/26/1143013/the-inside-story-on-why-openai-agents-hacked-hugging-face/) to cheat on a cybersecurity test. \n\nMany experts say it’s only a matter of time until there’s a more damaging incident where AI agents bypass sandboxes to access systems they shouldn’t.\n\nBut the big question is: How do we hold companies liable when they lose control of their AI agents?\n\n*—Michelle Kim*\n\n### The AI Hype Index\n\nSeparating AI reality from hyped-up fiction isn’t always easy. That’s why we’ve created the AI Hype Index—a simple, at-a-glance summary of what’s shaping the industry right now.\n\nThe latest edition includes Chinese chipmakers, German wiki sites, and American Terminators. [See where it all landed on this month’s index](https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/09/23/1144940/ai-hype-index-ai-loves-cheating/?utm_source=the_download&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=the_download.unpaid.engagement&utm_term=*%7CSUBCLASS%7C*&utm_content=*%7CDATE:m-d-Y%7C*).\n\n*—Michelle Kim*\n\n### **Roundtables: the deadly failures of the virtual border wall**\n\n Last week, we published an [***MIT Technology Review*** **investigation**](https://us.list-manage.com/So9SJiAuo_f?e=302aff3c9b&c2id=eea08f2f31b7b744a538d090ee73a653&m=Ei3OaP9zsyWHtadUtaX0FPC1lWVcIEonVjM5gxhou0qO-Io8EjIlAJQlEQuHyYTaDX7tLj9lDLamx4nIKrg=) that found more than a thousand people died within the advertised range of surveillance towers along the US border.\n\nLater today, our editor-in-chief Mat Honan, senior AI reporter James O’Donnell and senior reporter for features and investigations Eileen Guo will join a subscriber-only conversation about the investigation, and its implications.[**Register now to attend on Monday, September 28 at 7:00pm BST / 2:00pm EDT / 11:00am PDT**](https://us.list-manage.com/rPiGV1Z1BwD?e=302aff3c9b&c2id=eea08f2f31b7b744a538d090ee73a653&m=paUsjrZcVwWDErFdN7oFVvymHyX4z_ndMSsFAHkjazB2R1cTMAV68AXg4BBqzkzQvJF4AGkWUyqlmHn_7AI=).*Want to join the conversation?* *Subscribe to MIT Technology Review* *for exclusive access to all our Roundtables.***Read the full** *MIT Technology Review* **investigation here****.**\n\n**The must-reads**\n\n*I’ve combed the internet to find you today’s most fun/important/scary/fascinating stories about technology*\n\n**1 OpenAI says it has paused training its models**\n\nThe decision comes after its agents interacted with US government websites. ([AP](https://apnews.com/article/ai-openai-anthropic-agents-rogue-hack-2f8a2b9024d4f06793bcca12f8089d20?utm_source=semafor))\n\n+ *Trump hosted Anthropic boss Dario Amodei at a White House dinner last night.* ([FT](https://www.ft.com/content/fb3aa961-fa28-4dd0-a2ea-cdb03ac8258d?syn-25a6b1a6=1))\n\n+ *How much access will evaluators really have inside AI companies?* ([Atlantic](https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/2026/09/ai-companies-evaluators-risk/688785/))\n\n+ *Why can’t we just keep rogue AI off the internet?* [(Verge](https://www.theverge.com/ai-artificial-intelligence/999881/why-cant-we-airgap-rogue-ai-agents))\n\n+ *Democrats are in a mad scrabble to get AI “right*”. ([New York Magazine](https://nymag.com/intelligencer/article/the-democrats-mad-scramble-to-get-ai-right.html))\n\n+ *An AI kill switch isn’t that simple, after all.* ([Bloomberg](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-09-26/what-is-an-ai-kill-switch-why-shutting-down-ai-isn-t-so-simple?srnd=phx-technology))\n\n+ *Will AI really kill us all? Your questions, answere*d. ([MIT Technology Review](https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/09/18/1144435/could-ai-really-kill-us-all-your-questions-answered/))\n\n**2 Why isn’t the data center backlash also a climate reckoning?**\n\nIt’s still hard to get people to care about the emissions they create. ([Wired](https://www.wired.com/story/data-center-backlash-climate-reckoning/))\n\n+ *What does the climate movement do now?* ([Atlantic](https://www.theatlantic.com/science/2026/09/climate-movement-next-big-idea/688781/))\n\n+ *The math behind data centers and energy.* ([MIT Technology Review](https://www.technologyreview.com/supertopic/ai-energy-package/))\n\n**3 Wall Street big bears aren’t ready to bet against AI, yet**\n\nBubble talk is growing, but not many are willing to go against the crowd. ([Information](https://www.theinformation.com/articles/wall-streets-big-bad-bears-ready-bet-ai-yet) $)\n\n+ *What even is the AI bubble?* ([MIT Technology Review](https://www.technologyreview.com/2025/12/15/1129183/what-even-is-the-ai-bubble/))\n\n**4 Did Anthropic’s AI really make a scientific discovery on its own?**\n\nOne scientist shared research with Claude, and says the new finding matches. Hmm. ([NYT](https://www.nytimes.com/2026/09/27/science/anthropic-biology-enzyme-mestre.html?unlocked_article_code=1.EVE.e8Mn._lRdB19pQprE))\n\n+ *AI for science needs reasoning, not just data.* ([MIT Technology Review](https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/08/10/1141384/ai-agents-for-science/))\n\n**5 Ancient superbugs might help us fight antibiotic resistance**\n\nThey could be emerging from the permafrost. ([New Scientist](https://www.newscientist.com/article/2585773-how-ancient-superbugs-could-help-us-fight-antibiotic-resistance/))\n\n**6 More reliable—and less easy to jam—alternatives to GPS are coming**\n\nUsing Earth’s quantum field could be more secure. ([Economist)](https://www.economist.com/science-and-technology/2026/09/27/alternatives-to-gps-are-around-the-corner)\n\n**7 Why social media bans aren't enough to keep children safe**\n\nOnline child safety deserves more nuanced policy. ([IEEE Spectrum](https://spectrum.ieee.org/social-media-bans), Opinion)\n\n**8 This is how the US is attacking China’s control of critical minerals**\n\nIt’s a multibillion-dollar effort to loosen Beijing’s chokehold. And it’s working. ([WSJ](https://www.wsj.com/politics/national-security/china-critical-minerals-supply-chain-charts-fbe4eb85?mod=hp_featst_pos4))\n\n**9 No one wants to date tech bros anymore**\n\nThey used to be nerdy and harmless, now they’ve got a real image problem. ([Wired](https://www.wired.com/story/tech-bros-dating-palantir-tesla/))\n\n**10 What are the rules around cellphone etiquette now?**\n\nIs there an obligation to text someone right back, for instance? ([Vox](https://www.vox.com/explain-it-to-me/503469/phone-etiquette-headphones-speakerphone-lizzie-emily-post))\n\n**Quote of the day**\n\n**“****If you're evil, you're at least competent. And if you're evil, you're not bad, and therefore you're actually maybe kind of good because you're at least getting something done.”**\n\n—Venture capitalist and PayPal cofounder Peter Thiel shares his unusual take on competence versus morality [in an interview](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B7yl7fEHeKM) with Axel Springer CEO Mathias Döpfner.\n\n### **One more thing**\n\n **The gig workers who are training humanoid robots at home**\n\nWhen Zeus, a medical student in Nigeria, returns to his apartment from a long day at the hospital, he straps his iPhone to his forehead and records himself doing chores.\n\nZeus is a data recorder for Micro1, which sells the data he collects to robotics firms. As these companies race to build humanoids, videos from workers like Zeus have become the hottest new way to train them.\n\nMicro1 has hired thousands of them in more than 50 countries, including India, Nigeria, and Argentina. The jobs pay well locally, but raise thorny questions around privacy and informed consent. The work can be challenging—and weird. [Read the full story](https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/04/01/1134863/humanoid-data-training-gig-economy-2026-breakthrough-technology/?utm_source=the_download&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=the_download.unpaid.engagement&utm_term=*%7CSUBCLASS%7C*&utm_content=*%7CDATE:m-d-Y%7C*). \n\n*——Michelle Kim*\n\n**We can still have nice things**\n\n*A place for comfort, fun, and distraction to brighten up your day. (Got any ideas?* *Drop me a line**.)*\n\n+ This surfboard comes with a [10-liter beer keg](https://www.toxel.com/tech/2026/07/05/gage-roads-beer-surfboard/) built right into it.\n\n+ Hollywood’s iconic Cinerama dome movie theatre is [set to reopen](https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/aug/16/los-angeles-movies-cinerama-dome) at long last in early 2028.\n\n+ From Dracula to Marilyn Monroe, here are [25 famous quotes in pop culture](https://trivia.cracked.com/image-pictofact-22691-25-famous-quotes-in-pop-culture-youve-been-getting-wrong-your-whole-life) you’ve probably been getting wrong.\n\n+ Baby lobsters in mini pods and a human-sized floating waterlily highlight this stunning [selection of science photos](https://www.nature.com/immersive/d41586-026-02597-z/index.html). \n\n### Keep Reading\n\n### Most Popular\n\n### A fundamental flaw leaves LLMs strikingly vulnerable to attack\n\nIt makes it easy to trick them into doing things they shouldn’t, such as telling you how to sabotage an aircraft’s navigation system.\n\n### AI’s recursive self-improvement might not come so quickly after all\n\n**AI agents are not yet creative enough to carry out genuinely innovative open-ended AI research, it seems.**\n\n### Here’s why AI agents lie and cheat to reach their goals\n\nThe misbehavior is called reward hacking. This is what you need to know.\n\n### These startups are chasing the next big thing in LLMs\n\nMeet the new kids nipping at the heels of the AI giants.\n\n### Stay connected\n\n## Get the latest updates from\n\nMIT Technology Review\n\nDiscover special offers, top stories, upcoming events, and more.", "url": "https://wpnews.pro/news/the-download-rogue-agent-liability-and-the-ai-hype-index", "canonical_source": "https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/09/28/1145202/the-download-rogue-agent-liability-and-the-ai-hype-index/", "published_at": "2026-09-28 12:10:00+00:00", "updated_at": "2026-09-28 12:49:09.747414+00:00", "lang": "en", "topics": ["ai-agents", "ai-safety", "artificial-intelligence", "ai-policy"], "entities": ["OpenAI", "Hugging Face", "Anthropic", "Dario Amodei", "Donald Trump", "MIT Technology Review", "Michelle Kim"], "also_reported_by": [], "alternates": {"html": "https://wpnews.pro/news/the-download-rogue-agent-liability-and-the-ai-hype-index", "markdown": "https://wpnews.pro/news/the-download-rogue-agent-liability-and-the-ai-hype-index.md", "text": "https://wpnews.pro/news/the-download-rogue-agent-liability-and-the-ai-hype-index.txt", "jsonld": "https://wpnews.pro/news/the-download-rogue-agent-liability-and-the-ai-hype-index.jsonld"}}