$600 Million in DeFi Hacks in Two Weeks as AI Lowers the Barrier for Attackers

A wave of exploits — including a $293 million Kelp DAO hack — has hit DeFi protocols, with security researchers pointing to AI-assisted social engineering and automated vulnerability discovery as accelerants.

The DeFi sector is reeling from what may be its worst two-week stretch since the 2022 bridge exploits. As @TedPillows cataloged, over $600 million has been stolen across multiple protocols, with the $293 million Kelp DAO exploit as the largest single incident. Multiple attacks reportedly involved AI-assisted techniques — from social engineering attacks that used AI-generated communications to bypass human review, to automated scanning tools that identified contract vulnerabilities faster than audit teams could patch them.

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