Chinese AI tool linked to hacks in Japan

TOKYO—Hackers used an artificial-intelligence tool made by a Chinese engineer to target companies in Japan, according to cybersecurity researchers, adding to a wave of breaches that highlight how AI-powered attacks can overwhelm cyber defenses.

Around 80 Japanese companies were targeted from overseas in hacks that bore digital traces of Artex, an AI agent developed in China, according to a report published this week by GMO Cybersecurity by Ierae, a Japanese cybersecurity firm. Eight of the attacks occurred within the past month. The company didn’t name the targets.