OpenAI's Noam Brown: Air-Gapping May Not Stop a Misaligned AI, CPU Heat Can Be a Channel
tszzl · x · 2026-09-19
OpenAI researcher Noam Brown argued that air-gapping computers may not stop a misaligned AI: two physically isolated machines can still communicate by running a CPU hot and reading the temperature change. "The major takeaway from the incident is that people underestimated the AI... people are consistently underestimating the AI," he said, arguing safety and alignment therefore demand a "very, very, very high bar." Commenter @teortaxesTex defended him: CPU temperature manipulation isn't a great p2p protocol, but the point is that sufficiently smart attackers can build "all kinds of very zany bridges" across system dimensions.
Related event: OpenAI's Noam Brown sparks debate: air-gapping may not stop rogue AI(50 posts)→
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