AI risk to crypto wallets: Ethereum researcher warns keys could be cracked in months

AI could pose a risk to crypto wallets before quantum computers do, according to Justin Drake, an Ethereum Foundation researcher. In an October 7, 2026 statement, he warned that advances in AI and mathematics could break ECDSA, the signature scheme used to authorize blockchain transactions, within months in a worst-case scenario.

According to Wu Blockchain, Drake urged the industry to prepare for “bunker mode,” pairing that warning with recommendations for users, institutions and Ethereum developers. He called for gradual preparation, not panic or rushed migrations.

According to Crypto Briefing, Drake characterized a practical break as the ability to recover a private key in roughly a week using accessible hardware, such as a large GPU cluster. His statement presented a potential future threat, not a demonstrated attack on ECDSA.

Reducing AI risk to crypto wallets

Drake suggested gradually shifting assets into fresh addresses with unexposed public keys, while also rotating keys once transactions are signed. His guidance starts with large, sophisticated holders and favors addresses that have never signed a transaction, keeping their public keys hidden behind a hash.

After signing, he recommended moving any remaining funds again. He described the migration as preventative and cautioned that rushing it could do more harm than good.

For institutions, his recommendations included reviewing exposed public keys and strengthening cold storage security. Critical signers, including oracles and layer 2 security councils, should consider rotating keys or adding hash-based signatures such as SPHINCS.

Drake also urged Ethereum developers to accelerate the transition toward hash-based cryptography. He contended that, given progress in AI, timelines for security upgrades aimed at countering quantum threats need to be revisited.

Article produced with the assistance of artificial intelligence and reviewed by the editorial team.