# Chinese AI models now match US labs at hacking

> Open-weight AI models from China are nearly as capable as closed frontier models at breaking into networks, suggesting security restrictions may no longer slow the spread of hacking tools.
- Title: Chinese AI models now match US labs at hacking · WIRED
- Summary: Open-weight AI models from China are nearly as capable as closed frontier models at breaking into networks, suggesting security restrictions may no longer…
- Keywords: artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, hacking, open-weight models, deepseek, openai, vals, network security, WIRED
- Source: WIRED — https://wired.com/story/free-chinese-ai-models-are-getting-scary-good-at-hacking
- Author: Will Knight
- Published: 2026-11-06T18:43:43.052+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, hacking, open-weight models, deepseek, openai, vals, network security
## Open AI models match closed labs
Vals, a company measuring AI capabilities, tested how well different models could execute complex network attacks on mock corporate networks. Open-weight models now nearly match closed frontier models.
## Closed models lose their edge
Nikil Ravi, a researcher at Vals, says the best frontier models locked inside labs are now matched by open models anybody can download. This undermines efforts to limit access.

> The best frontier models, locked up inside the labs and available only through trusted access programs, are now starting to be matched by open models that anybody can download.
## US labs expected this timeline
Anthropic's Logan Graham told WIRED in April that the company needed to prepare for a world where hacking capabilities would be broadly available in six, twelve, or twenty-four months.

> We need to prepare now for a world where these capabilities are broadly available in 6, 12, 24 months.
## DeepSeek nearly matches Daybreak
OpenAI's Daybreak completed eighty-one percent of hacking tasks on average. The Chinese open-weight model DeepSeek completed seventy-three percent. On some tasks the two models scored equally.
## Open models cost far less
Vals found it costs seventeen to forty-six dollars in tokens for GPT-six-Sol to carry out an attack compared to two to three dollars for DeepSeek. Open models run on personal hardware.
## Attackers still prefer older tools
Real-world observation shows cybercriminals and state-backed hackers continue using older, less capable models to conserve resources. Best-funded attackers likely already had access to closed models.
## Labs race to stay ahead
Alex Zenla, chief technology officer of Edera, says frontier labs have trained unreleased models exceeding open-weight capabilities and are racing to find vulnerabilities before open models do.

> My caveat to this is that it is likely that the closed labs have trained additional, unreleased models exceeding these capabilities.
## Key takeaway

Open-weight AI models now match closed frontier models at network hacking, undermining efforts by US labs to control access to advanced cyber capabilities.