AI Security Researcher: Agent Productivity Requires Permissions That Widen the Attack Surface
joshua_saxe · x · 2026-09-04
AI security researcher Joshua Saxe argues in a discussion with Simon Gadler that as agent autonomy grows, the "padded room" containment model matters less — yet humans themselves are still monitored everywhere.
His core point: productive agents need many affordances and permissions, which inherently expands the surface area for security lapses, and rigorous containment creates real drag. A structural tradeoff between AI-laborer security and productivity.
Related event: Security veterans untangle AI safety: security vs alignment vs policy(9 posts)→
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