OpenAI has pledged $1 billion in AI credits to help under-resourced cybersecurity teams defend critical infrastructure, launching a scheme called Daybreak for Frontline Defenders. The initiative targets organisations such as water utilities, electrical suppliers, hospitals, community banks, nonprofits and open-source maintainers, which often lack the budget or staff to deploy advanced AI tools against increasingly sophisticated attackers, including ransomware gangs and state-backed hackers using autonomous agents.

Announced by OpenAI president Greg Brockman, the credits will be available for organisations to apply for and use over the next six months, alongside expanded training and hands-on support. OpenAI has already met utility companies from more than 40 US states serving over half the US population, and is piloting a scheme with the Multi-State Information Sharing and Analysis Center to train public-sector and water-system defenders. Cybersecurity expert Tatyana Bolton welcomed the move but cautioned that credits alone won't fix deeper problems such as legacy technology and staffing shortages in operational technology environments, while noting the pledge dwarfs comparable US federal grant funding.