Avalanche Founder Warns AI Could Expose Hidden Blockchain Bugs

Emin Gün Sirer, founder of Avalanche, warned that artificial intelligence could expose software vulnerabilities in blockchain systems before cryptographic breakthroughs undermine ECDSA, the signature algorithm widely used to authorize crypto transactions.

Sirer cited Ripple’s code as an example of software that may contain flaws difficult for human reviewers to detect but easier for AI systems to identify. His warning did not identify a specific XRP Ledger vulnerability, an active exploit or evidence that AI had attacked the network.

The concern centers on software defects rather than a confirmed failure of cryptography. ECDSA helps authenticate transactions, while blockchain networks also depend on complex code for processing payments, validating ledger activity and handling transaction types.

Separately, the XRP Ledger released version 3.4.1 on Sept. 25, 2026, as an emergency update addressing security-sensitive protocol issues. The release introduced the fixBatchV1_2 amendment and added security and stability fixes.

The changes addressed incorrectly wrapped Batch inner transactions and strengthened integer arithmetic in the payment engine and ledger helpers. Server operators were instructed to upgrade as soon as possible. Unsupported servers could become amendment-blocked if the amendment activated.

The XRP Ledger Foundation said it initially withheld the security-fix source code because of the sensitive nature of the changes. It planned to publish the code with a technical retrospective.

The update does not establish a connection to Sirer’s warning. The release materials do not say that AI discovered the vulnerabilities fixed in version 3.4.1, and they provide no evidence that AI compromised the XRP Ledger, defeated ECDSA or caused funds to be stolen.

The broader issue is the distinction between cryptographic security and software security. Even if the cryptography protecting transactions remains intact, defects in the code implementing a blockchain can still create risks. Sirer’s warning came as the XRP Ledger addressed its own security-sensitive protocol issues, but the two developments were not linked in the available information.

The next concrete step for XRP Ledger operators is upgrading to version 3.4.1 before the fixBatchV1_2 amendment activates.