South Korean public and private sector entities join Anthropic-led security coalition; membership and scope set to expand; initiative aims to secure permanent edge against AI cyber threats
Samsung Electronics, SK Hynix and SK Telecom have joined Project Glasswing, the Anthropic-led cybersecurity coalition. The Korea Internet & Security Agency, known as KISA, has also confirmed its participation.
The move signals progress on two fronts: defending against AI-driven cyber threats at the national level and protecting the semiconductor industry, which has emerged as a critical pillar of the country's infrastructure.
According to industry sources Thursday, SK Telecom and KISA have already secured access to Mithril, Anthropic's AI model, through their membership in Glasswing. Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix are also expected to finalize their participation soon.
Those two companies are currently completing final steps, including verifying that they meet Anthropic's security requirements, sources said.
Interest in Glasswing accelerated after it became known in April that Mithril, the AI model developed by Anthropic, could identify security vulnerabilities and carry out system attacks. The Ministry of Science and ICT and a string of domestic companies began exploring membership shortly after.
Participation became possible after Anthropic significantly expanded Mithril access on June 2, opening the model to roughly 150 institutions across 15 countries.
The development offers relief to the Ministry of Science and ICT, which had called for strengthening domestic capabilities following what the industry dubbed the "Mithril shock." Joining Glasswing was widely seen as essential, given that Mithril outperforms existing domestic AI models.
The urgency grew as AI-driven cyber threats became more concrete, raising the need to protect critical infrastructure including power grids, water systems, healthcare, telecommunications and hardware. Lee Sang-geun, director of the AI Security Research Institute at Korea University, told a recent National Assembly Research Service forum that joining Glasswing was necessary to overcome what he called an "information asymmetry."
SK Telecom, an existing strategic investor in Anthropic, is now positioned as the most advanced of the three major telecoms in AI security, having secured access to Mithril — widely regarded as the most capable AI model currently available.
Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix have also invested in Anthropic's Series H round. A semiconductor industry official said the companies had "reviewed real-world usage reports praising Mithril from a security standpoint and have been examining its applicability."
Meanwhile, Anthropic said it plans to expand Glasswing further to include "critical infrastructure providers, key open-source software maintainers and security testers." The company added that if Glasswing succeeds, it "could provide a permanent advantage against AI-driven cyber threats."
ko@heraldcorp.com
