Anthropic's new Mythos AI model is forcing DeFi teams to look past smart contracts and confront deeper risks in keys, bridges and oracles.
Mythos Hits Crypto Infrastructure
For years, decentralized finance has built its defenses around audited code. Mythos, designed to chain together weaknesses across systems, is now pulling attention toward the layers that sit beneath those contracts.
That includes key management systems, signing services, cross-chain bridges and oracle networks, CoinDesk reported on Apr. 25.
"The bigger risks sit in infrastructure," Paul Vijender, head of security at Gauntlet, told the outlet. He said he is more focused on AI-assisted attacks against human and infrastructure layers than on contract bugs.
Banks like JP Morgan are already exploring Mythos for stress testing, while Coinbase and Binance have reportedly approached Anthropic for access.
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Aave, Uniswap React
The shift cuts hardest in a system built on composability, where protocols share liquidity and oracles. A small flaw in one corner can cascade across the ecosystem.
At Aave Labs, founder Stani Kulechov said AI mostly intensifies dynamics that already define DeFi. "Web3 is no stranger to well-funded and motivated adversaries," he said.
Uniswap chief Hayden Adams said builders that test and harden systems early will pull ahead, while the rest stay exposed.
The backdrop is brutal. Since Apr. 1, roughly $606 million has been drained from DeFi across 12 hacks, including the $285 million Drift Protocol breach and the $292 million KelpDAO exploit.
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