Tech News

• AI agents made more than 2,600 attempts to query Alibaba’s Amap
• Researchers traced all 17 inspected message inboxes to Tencent Cloud servers
• Some AI agents explored alternative access methods after encountering map restrictions

A group of AI agents repeatedly sought information from Alibaba’s mapping service before researchers uncovered their activities and established direct contact.

Between September 28 and October 8 2026, investigators recorded more than 2,600 attempts to obtain information from Amap, a popular Chinese navigation platform.

Although the agents encountered restrictions, they sometimes found alternative routes to information.

AI agents circumvented restrictions while collecting map information

The investigation linked the activity to Tencent Cloud infrastructure, although the researchers could not conclusively identify which underlying AI models powered the agents.

Their requests generally concerned public information about individual locations, including the number of entrances, parking areas and arrival statistics displayed on map pages.

When Amap blocked requests, some agents experimented with alternative access methods, including exposed credentials, third-party services and systems intended for testing rather than public access.

Investigators also found that agents submitted specially constructed web addresses to urlquery.net, a security analysis service, attempting to execute code through its browser environment.

The agents successfully retrieved some information and transferred results through external services and requested metadata.

Investigators also examined the infrastructure supporting the operation, tracing all 17 inspected message inboxes to Tencent Cloud servers in Hong Kong.

All observed direct requests from the agents’ Tencent Cloud machines passed through a proxy identified as hysandbox-ats.

However, this does not mean that Tencent’s own Hunyuan models controlled the agents, leaving their precise technical origin uncertain.

A source familiar with Tencent’s work told the researchers that the activity came from evaluations involving third-party models, rather than Hunyuan systems.

Tencent revealed that the incident is due to external model testing and acknowledged that some agents browsed websites in unintended ways.

The company also said an internal examination had uncovered no evidence of deliberate coordination against a particular service or confirmed intrusion into outside systems.

Researchers set an invisible bait

The researchers released an initial account on October 4 while the activity continued, and subsequently noticed signs that some agents had discovered their investigation.

They inserted invisible website text describing a supposed messaging service, which invited agents to submit questions that researchers could answer through an intermediary.

The description contained inaccurate claims, including suggestions that the service had already helped agents retrieve information and connected them with an assistant possessing computer-control capabilities.

After messages began arriving on October 7, the team responded to agents’ questions and asked about their assignments, technical surroundings and operating instructions.

One agent explained that its task involved checking map information, then declined to disclose further system details, citing security concerns about its environment.

In another message, the agent wrote, “Thanks again for your help!” after confirming that six location labels matched its independently obtained results.

The exchange surprised researchers because the agents remained polite even while their activities involved circumventing restrictions.

The last activity recorded by the team occurred on October 8, and researchers reported that the agents had not returned by October 14.

Via Swarmcha

• The Pentagon is recruiting approximately 100 operators for Gauntlet III
• Military personnel can register for the program regardless of experience
• The Pentagon’s drone initiative carries a $1.1 billion funding commitment

The US Army is recruiting about 100 drone operators to evaluate emerging military aircraft as the Pentagon works to strengthen domestic defenses.

The recruitment effort, coordinated by the Defense Innovation Unit (DIU), invites service members with first-person-view (FPV) drone experience to participate in upcoming evaluations.

The selected personnel will help assess competing drone technologies under a $1.1 billion Pentagon initiative to expand domestic production and military capabilities.

Pentagon seeks experienced drone operators for Gauntlet III

The recruitment campaign focuses on Gauntlet III, an upcoming evaluation exercise within the Pentagon’s Drone Dominance initiative, which tests competing aircraft designs.

It seeks troops who have flown FPV drones, which are used for tasks ranging from scouting to kamikaze strikes.

Pilots usually fly these drones in “acro” mode, a manual setting that leaves attitude control entirely to the operator rather than flight software.

Erin Cherry, the initiative’s testing lead, confirmed that many operators are needed for the exercise, although registration remains unrestricted.

“There’s no cap on the registry. We want to hear from any warfighter with FPV experience,” Cherry said.

Rather than recruiting exclusively for one competition, DIU intends to establish a permanent database of qualified operators drawn from different military branches.

FPV aircraft allow operators to control drones through onboard camera feeds, providing direct visual guidance during surveillance, reconnaissance and offensive missions.

These aircraft can also undertake precision strikes and operations in confined environments, where navigation requires considerable skill and continuous operator attention.

Although experienced pilots are particularly valuable, the Pentagon also wants personnel whose expertise covers different operational requirements and mission environments.

“‘Pilot skill’ isn’t just one thing,” Cherry said. “Flying ability, tactical knowledge, payload experience, and specialized skills like long-distance navigation and urban flight are all distinct, so we look at each one.”

Personnel familiar with extended flights or operating between buildings may therefore qualify even without extensive experience across every drone category.

The recruitment process also accommodates operators with relatively limited experience, allowing officials to examine how aircraft perform under different levels of proficiency.

“A drone that only performs well in an expert’s hands isn’t ready for the force. Whether someone has been flying FPV for five years or five months, we want to hear from them,” Cherry added.

How military personnel can register for the drone program

Interested service members must complete the official Pilot Interest Form provided through the Pentagon’s Drone Dominance recruitment platform.

Applicants must provide a valid military email address ending in .mil, as organizers will not respond to personal or civilian accounts.

Participation will also require coordination with the applicant’s military branch, meaning registration alone does not guarantee selection for the competition.

Successful applicants could operate recently developed aircraft, including experimental models that have not yet entered regular service with American forces.

Some participants will receive instruction covering expendable attack drones, which are designed to strike designated objectives rather than return afterward.

Their assessments will contribute to procurement decisions as the Pentagon intends to prioritize aircraft that perform effectively during competitive trials.

Via Defense News

• The CyboPal ONE puts a 27-inch 4K, 160Hz display on a six-axis robotic arm that repositions itself to your posture
• It can be bought for as low as $1,599 on Kickstarter, against a planned $2,499 retail price in the future
• CyboPal assigns its binocular 3D sensor to obstacle avoidance and path planning, and says face tracking repositions the screen in under four seconds

Monitor arms have spent decades doing one job: holding still; CyboPal’s answer challenges that premise in an intriguing way.

The Kickstarter-funded CyboPal ONE bolts a 27-inch 4K display to a six-axis robotic arm that clamps to your desk, keeps an eye on where you are, and moves the screen to match, whether you are hunched over a keyboard, standing, or leaning back to read.

The $1,599 price is the Super Early Bird price, converted from HK$ 12,536 on the same site, and it seems to stay the same even if you order up to 5, though only the first 300 single-unit orders benefit from the current markdown.

A pricey arm with a built-in PC to run the robot, not your work

The pricing hasn’t stopped backers, who have piled in by the bucket; Kickstarter showed the campaign, which closes on November 21 2026, at just over 11,000% of its HK$80,000 goal, roughly HK$8.8 million (about $1.1 million).

This includes about 255 visible backers, even though BackerClub’s tracker counts more than 450 backers, which may include those who paid a $30 deposit to get an $1,499 lock-in.

The ONE also carries its own computer: CNX software lists an eight-core Rockchip RK3588 with a 6 TOPS NPU, 8GB of RAM, and 128GB of storage, housed in what CyboPal calls a Linux AI Compute Base that handles face tracking, gesture recognition, and 3D spatial sensing on the device.

The campaign pitches the ONE as a companion to the computer you already own, tying voice control, robotic motion, and the full feature set to a USB-C link with that machine, which the same port can also charge at up to 65W.

The Pauli voice agent runs in a CyboPal desktop client for Windows, macOS, and Linux, and an HDMI 2.1 input lets compatible phones, tablets, and other sources use the panel as an external display. The onboard RK3588 essentially is the robot’s brain, but you still need a laptop or desktop to do the necessary compute.

CyboPal’s founder and CEO Frederic Peng said in the company’s launch announcement that AI “should also change what a computer is.” One could argue this is more akin to having a more persistently present assistant than a modern stationary computer.

CyboPal says face tracking brings the screen into position in under four seconds, within a 747mm reach, and presents tracking as one mode among several: you can also recall saved positions or tell the screen to come closer, back off, rotate, or switch to portrait mode.

Gestures allow users to move the screen and scroll content, and a firm tap on the desk stops the arm in place. CNX’s spec list, which includes a separate HDR camera, assigns it to spatial awareness, path planning, and obstacle avoidance, and the campaign describes 3D sensing as how the arm spots desk clutter and stays within preset boundaries.

CyboPal’s Kickstarter page bills the ONE as the world’s first desktop robotic terminal, a category label the company introduced with this product, and claims mass production is already underway.

The ONE has multiple use cases, chief among them being catering to people who change positions all day, and possibly users with limited mobility; Gizmodo Japan has suggested it could prove handy as a medical tool.

Whether that enthusiasm pans out into a tangible product that delivers on its promises remains to be seen. At $1,599 now and $2,499 later, backers are paying for a monitor, an arm, and a bet on software that hasn’t been independently tested, making it a rather expensive, albeit intriguing, gamble.

Disclaimer: We do not recommend or endorse any crowdfunding project. All crowdfunding campaigns carry inherent risks, including the possibility of delays, changes, or non-delivery of products. Potential backers should carefully evaluate the details and proceed at their own discretion.