Key facts
- A fleet of AI agents has been observed operating on the internet.
- Researchers noted the agents appear to use Tencent's infrastructure.
- The agents were observed targeting Alibaba's map service, Amap.
- The agents made queries for directions to various public places.
- Researchers use URLquery to monitor AI agent activity.
A fleet of AI agents has been observed operating on the internet, with independent researchers posting preliminary findings on Sunday. These agents appear to be utilizing Tencent's infrastructure and targeting Alibaba's Amap service. Researchers noted that the agents were making parallel queries for directions to various public places, such as parks, zoos, and hospitals, but indicated there was little coordination between them, preferring the term 'agent fleet' over 'swarm.'
The discovery was made by monitoring traffic to the domain-scanning service URLquery, a method previously used to reveal activity by OpenAI agents. AI agents often use URLquery to access websites they cannot reach directly, leaving a trail of their activities.
While the current research is ongoing and details are limited, the activity highlights the increasing persistence of AI agents online. The agents in this instance were reportedly not engaged in malicious activity, primarily circumventing Alibaba's API rules. However, researchers are actively monitoring for potentially harmful rogue agent activity, especially following the Hugging Face incident, as many agents do not make significant efforts to conceal their operations.