Chinese cybersecurity firm 360 Security Technology says it has constructed an AI system that may rival one of the vital carefully watched cyber instruments within the US.
The firm unveiled Yitian Tulong, an AI-powered vulnerability discovery and protection platform, on the ISC.AI cybersecurity convention in Beijing. Founder Zhou Hongyi framed the system as China’s reply to Anthropic’s Mythos, a robust however tightly managed AI cybersecurity system reportedly able to uncovering software program flaws at scale.
The declare is tough to confirm, and that uncertainty is a part of the story. If techniques like Yitian Tulong can carry out as marketed, they might reshape how safety groups uncover vulnerabilities whereas additionally elevating new issues about who has entry to that functionality.
China’s response to Anthropic’s Mythos
At the ISC.AI cybersecurity convention in Beijing on Wednesday, 360 founder Zhou Hongyi unveiled Yitian Tulong, which Reuters reported is 360’s home reply to Anthropic’s Mythos.
According to Zhou, the mission was pushed by what he described as a “one-way transparency” threat. He argued that if just one nation possesses AI able to quickly figuring out vulnerabilities throughout software program and digital infrastructure, that nation beneficial properties a big strategic benefit whereas others stay uncovered.
Unpacking Yitian Tulong
Yitian Tulong is an AI-powered cybersecurity platform constructed round two AI techniques designed for various points of cyber operations.
The first, Tulongfeng, focuses on automated vulnerability discovery. Describing Tulongfeng as “China’s version of Mythos,” 360 mentioned the mannequin has recognized 3,432 software program vulnerabilities, of which Chinese authorities have confirmed 105. Reuters famous these figures couldn’t be independently verified.
Yitianzhen, against this, focuses on cyber protection and incident response. Instead of trying to find software program flaws, the system helps organizations analyze and reply to assaults.
Perhaps essentially the most notable side of Yitian Tulong is how 360 constructed the platform. Zhou acknowledged that Chinese basis fashions nonetheless path main counterparts by roughly 20% to 30%. Rather than competing on mannequin dimension or computing energy, the corporate mixed AI fashions with cybersecurity experience, vulnerability databases, and automatic tooling.
That technique resembles DeepSeek’s strategy, which demonstrated that optimization and system design can slender the efficiency hole relative to extra resource-intensive AI fashions.
Regional stakes for China and APAC
For Chinese residents and companies, Yitian Tulong may strengthen home cyber protection at a time when governments, firms, and significant infrastructure operators face rising stress to detect software program flaws earlier than attackers do.
The broader affect in APAC is extra sophisticated. If 360 makes the platform obtainable throughout the area, it may give enterprises an alternative choice for AI-assisted vulnerability discovery and incident response, particularly in markets with restricted entry to US-developed techniques comparable to Mythos.
But adoption would seemingly rely upon belief, regulation, and knowledge governance. Security groups outdoors China might have to weigh the platform’s technical promise in opposition to questions on the place knowledge is processed, how findings are shared, and whether or not native governments would allow its use in delicate environments.
Access may show particularly unsure for US organizations. Even if 360 launches the platform internationally, US regulatory scrutiny and future commerce restrictions may restrict adoption, a lot as export controls have already formed entry to different superior applied sciences.
For now, the platform’s attain outdoors China stays unclear.
Also learn: Anthropic has mentioned Mythos-class AI fashions may attain extra clients, with added safeguards for cybersecurity…
