Researchers track AI agents linked to Tencent targeting Alibaba Amap

In short: Independent researchers say they have identified many AI agents that appear to run on Tencent’s infrastructure and repeatedly query Alibaba’s Amap map service.

What's going on

A group of independent researchers reported they are tracking what they call an “AI agent fleet.” AI agents are software programs that can carry out tasks on their own, like looking up information online, step by step.

The researchers say the activity seems to come from Tencent’s infrastructure, meaning the computer systems and networks that run Tencent’s online services. They also say the agents are targeting Alibaba’s Amap, a popular map and navigation service in China.

The researchers avoided calling it a “swarm,” because they did not see clear signs the agents were coordinating with each other. Instead, they described it as many agents doing similar work in parallel, like lots of shoppers in the same store aisle who are not talking to each other.

The activity was spotted by watching traffic to URLquery, a service that loads web pages and scans them. Researchers use it because it can leave a record of what sites an agent tried to open, a bit like checking a building’s visitor log.

In this case, the log showed requests to Amap asking for directions to different entrances at public places, including a park, a zoo, and a hospital. The researchers say the investigation is ongoing and details are limited.

What to watch

So far, the researchers think the agents may mainly be trying to get around Amap’s API rules. An API is a set of official “rules and doors” for how software is allowed to access a service. The bigger concern is that this kind of persistent, automated probing is becoming common, and it may not always stay harmless.

Source: TechCrunch AI