AI infrastructure expands rapidly on the public internet

Censys data reveals a 63% surge in AI-related infrastructure exposed to the public internet over nine months, with nearly 268,000 internet-facing systems running 44 different AI products as of July 2026. This marks a significant increase from approximately 164,000 systems in October 2025. Austin emphasized the need for companies to treat AI infrastructure like any other software, ensuring regular reviews, updates, and security measures. The ease of deploying AI applications has created challenges for IT teams, making it difficult to track and secure all software used by employees. n8n, a workflow automation platform, was the most widely exposed product, connecting AI agents to various applications and services. While the findings do not confirm vulnerabilities, they highlight the risks of exposing software that can access sensitive corporate data. Companies must now focus on inventorying, patching, and securing these systems to mitigate potential threats from hackers.