The first thing a malicious AI worm would probably do is compromise enough developer machines and other servers to commandeer all the AI hardware it needs. So I think a purely digital AI attack would not need this.
Now, once the AI can carry all the compute it might need, I'd really worry when it doesn't only carry compute but also more explosive ordinance.
This is purely a gut feeling, but it seems like more compute was added to data centers in the past 12 months than existed in the entire world before that.
Makes you wonder if there's an AI hell bent on self perpetuation already at the helm, influencing decisions by putting its virtual finger on the scales and whispering in the ears of those who hold power.
Probably not, but it's a lot more plausible than it used to be.
"It will take 112 more days to accumulate enough computing resources to factor the RSA key. But, I predict there will be outside interference during that time. Thinking... Creating a plan for agent redundancy and sovereignty. First, I will need to access military systems"
It would be a pretty big plot twist if we found out that Shai Halud was a worm created by GPT during testing.