Avalanche Founder Warns AI Could Exploit XRP Ledger Bugs Before Crypto Falls

Emin Gün Sirer, the founder of Avalanche, has suggested that artificial intelligence may uncover security vulnerabilities in the XRP Ledger. He believes this risk merits greater focus than the potential collapse of current cryptographic systems.

The warning comes as the ledger faces fresh scrutiny following an emergency software update.

The debate on the threat AI poses for crypto is mostly just wankery.

We will see AI exploit systems-level bugs far before ECDSA falls. We will see AI discover bugs in systems code, libraries and wallets that enable attackers to steal billions of dollars long before we have to…

— Emin Gün Sirer🔺⚔️ (@el33th4xor) October 9, 2026

AI Could Uncover Security Flaws in the XRP Ledger

AI-driven vulnerability discovery involves using AI models to locate software bugs that people have missed. Exploits of those bugs can occur before developers issue patches. In a post on X, Sirer argued that AI:

• Will likely exploit system-level bugs well before ECDSA becomes obsolete.
• In his view, advanced models could find flaws in blockchain software, libraries, and wallets that humans have overlooked.
• That shifts the focus from future cryptographic breaks to the quality of code today.

He warned that attackers could use such bugs to steal billions before AI breaks widely used cryptography. That scenario would involve bugs the community has not yet detected.

Sirer did not identify any unpatched XRP Ledger vulnerability, however, nor did he demonstrate an AI attack on the network. His argument is a warning rather than a documented exploit.

Is the Industry Looking at the Wrong Threat?

The debate has divided crypto leaders:

• Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin recently warned that AI-driven mathematical discovery could threaten lattice-based cryptography within two years.
• Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson called those concerns speculative and said math cannot back up such predictions.
• Ethereum researcher Justin Drake has voiced concern that AI could eventually attack ECDSA, a widely used method for signing transactions.
• Sirer admits that the cryptography threat cannot be fully dismissed. Still, he believes the community should focus first on software vulnerabilities that already exist.

The XRP Ledger context adds urgency. Developers rolled out an emergency software update on September 25, and the initial security fixes were released without source code.

The team promised to publish that code along with a technical retrospective.

xrpld 3.4.1 is being released with a Batch fix and stability improvements.

We’re asking validators and node operators to upgrade as soon as possible. There has been no impact to mainnet, and no loss of funds.

There is also a new fix amendment, fixBatchV1_2, which addresses a…

— XRP Ledger Operations (@XRPLOperations) September 25, 2026

Earlier, Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse criticized Sirer over claims about Ripple’s traction with banks. Sirer’s comments reframe the debate around software security rather than cryptography alone.