OpenAI Launches "EVMbench": Testing AI's Ability to "Ensure Smart Contract Security"

As the security risks in cryptocurrency continue to rise, OpenAI has officially entered the blockchain security field. Led by CEO Sam Altman, OpenAI announced the launch of a new testing framework called “EVMbench,” aimed at evaluating whether artificial intelligence has the practical ability to “understand, detect, and even repair” vulnerabilities in cryptocurrency smart contracts.

OpenAI states that EVMbench will focus on smart contract security issues on Ethereum and other EVM-compatible chains. The ultimate goal is to establish a quantifiable and comparable evaluation standard for AI systems in the blockchain security domain.

A “smart contract” refers to self-executing code deployed on the blockchain, widely supporting decentralized exchanges (DEX), lending protocols, derivatives protocols, and other on-chain financial applications. However, once deployed, these contracts are usually immutable and cannot be freely modified or rolled back. If there are logical flaws, it often results in real financial losses, with high costs for remediation. Over the past few years, the DeFi sector has repeatedly experienced hacker attacks and fund losses due to code vulnerabilities, exemplifying this structural risk.

OpenAI points out that the core goal of EVMbench is to verify whether “AI systems are mature enough to assist in preventing smart contract vulnerabilities in real economic risk environments.”

This testing framework was developed jointly by OpenAI and cryptocurrency investment firm Paradigm. The test data is not simulated but sourced from past vulnerabilities in smart contracts that were discovered during professional security audits and security competitions.

EVMbench primarily evaluates AI performance across three key capabilities: vulnerability identification; ability to reproduce attack paths in controlled environments (simulating hacker perspectives); and fixing vulnerable code without disrupting the contract’s original functionality.

OpenAI states that the ultimate purpose of launching EVMbench is to establish a clear evaluation standard for AI systems in the blockchain security field. As DeFi protocols now lock in user funds worth billions of dollars, the defense of smart contracts has become a fundamental priority that can shake the entire market.