How do you "hack a lab and synthesize something"?

stanford_labrat 2 hours ago | parent | next [-]

Well right now this would be highly implausible (still possible though).

But what I garner is that AI/robotics led wet lab work is in progress. And hacking the AI running the wet lab to make a virus is definitely plausible as that seems to be one of the directions we’re going in the AI+biopharma space

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internet2000 2 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

Remember Stuxnet? Hack one of these, wait until the right compounds are physically loaded, then execute https://www.sigmaaldrich.com/US/en/products/chemistry-and-bi...

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tptacek 2 hours ago | parent [-]

Stuxnet misconfigured industrial equipment that was already set up to run, and all it did was break that equipment. This scenario sets a much, much higher bar.

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internet2000 29 minutes ago | parent [-]

I guarantee there's misconfigured chemical analysis equipment out there exposed to the internet.

I don't think the grandparent was implying the AI would be controlling robot arms to mix things directly (or at least I didn't interpret as such), but it could very well sit in the network until it notices two dangerous compounds in the same machine, and trigger a breakage that causes a harmful mixture. Break a vial containing a virus, then break two more that cause an emergency evac and maybe that's enough to get something out there.

	▲	tptacek 18 minutes ago \| parent [-]
		I have no doubt that somewhere there's chemical equipment an Internet attacker could break, or, maybe, if I have to stipulate, misconfigure enough to, like, poison someone. But my question is about the notion that you could synthesize a specific scary substance.

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mnicky 2 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

These days you can only try, that's why I wrote that :)

But in the near future labs will be more automated I guess.

The other option you can try these days is maybe social engineering, impersonation, etc. where you try to persuade someone to do that for you.

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codemog 2 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

It’s complete science fiction so they’re allowed to say anything. They could have said the AI will upload itself to the internet, start self replicating, hack the stock market. Whatever they want because it’s all made up nonsense.

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scythe 2 hours ago | parent | prev [-]

First, hack into a factory and invent machines that can do lab-bench chemistry. Then...