Manuel Aráoz, co-founder of OpenZeppelin, publicly stated on X that he now considers the entire decentralized finance sector unsafe due to the rise of advanced AI agents he warns are “superhuman at finding vulnerabilities.” However, OpenZeppelin quickly clarified that Aráoz left the firm in 2019 and that his personal views do not reflect the company’s position, while also noting that AI tools could strengthen defensive security measures.
The warning comes after April 2026 became the worst month on record for crypto hacks, with over $635 million stolen across 28 separate incidents, an average of nearly one breach per day. [1] Much of the damage has been linked to North Korean hacking groups, which blockchain analytics firm TRM Labs says were responsible for 76% of stolen funds during the period. Separately, stablecoin issuer StablR recently froze USDR and EURR after an attacker minted $13.5 million in unbacked tokens. [2]
In response to the escalating threat, Jack Dorsey’s Block has launched Project Loupe, a free AI-driven vulnerability scanner designed to continuously audit open-source Bitcoin projects. The initiative aims to equip defenders with the same advanced AI-powered tools that attackers are increasingly using. [3]