The coalition says hospitals, water utilities, local governments, and other essential services should receive AI security tools, funding, and hands-on support first.
More than 150 organizations called for a global surge in cyber defense, warning that they expect AI-driven attacks to become more widespread and sophisticated within months.
The open letter’s signatories include OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, Microsoft, Amazon Web Services, major cybersecurity companies, banks, technology providers, and consulting firms.
The letter outlines a broad, shared responsibility for businesses, governments, cybersecurity companies, technology partners, and major AI developers. It does not specify funding amounts, deadlines, or how much support individual organizations will provide.
The signatories did not cite evidence supporting their prediction that AI-powered attacks will become much more capable and widespread within months. They said existing security weaknesses, such as unpatched software and weak access controls, leave businesses and public services exposed as AI gives attackers more powerful tools.
Essential services would receive help first
The coalition called for hospitals, water utilities, local governments, and other essential services with limited security budgets to receive early support.
They call for governments to fund cyber defense for these organizations and expand programs that permit trusted security providers to test their systems. Governments should also coordinate the sharing of information about attacks and help organizations respond and recover.
The letter called on major AI companies to provide access to powerful models, funding, training, and hands-on assistance. Cybersecurity companies and technology providers should help essential-service operators deploy AI security tools, repair weaknesses, and verify that the repairs work.
These are proposed actions, not commitments that the signatories have agreed to fund or complete.
Businesses are told to treat cyber defense as urgent
The letter called on every organization to make cyber defense an immediate leadership priority and address its highest-risk weaknesses.
Companies should strengthen security standards for the software they buy, build, and use, including code produced with AI, according to the letter. They should also limit people and software to the access they need, strengthen authentication, and use multiple layers of protection.
The coalition said companies can use lower-cost AI models to check more systems for weaknesses and reserve the most powerful models for harder security problems. When essential systems cannot be patched without interrupting operations, organizations should use other safeguards and verify that those protections work.
Technology providers would share tools and attack information
The letter calls for cybersecurity companies and technology providers to continuously test whether their defenses can withstand attacks using increasingly capable AI models.
They should also share information about attacks, tested response plans, and verified repairs so that work completed by one organization can help protect others.
The letter called on major AI developers to build tools that make AI systems easier to monitor. It also said companies should be able to identify AI agents operating in their systems, review what those agents did, and determine who authorized their actions.
OpenAI is accepting applications from additional organizations that want to add their names to the letter. Submissions require approval, and accepted organizations will be listed by name.
