TECHNOMALIST
Google says it has fixed significantly more security vulnerabilities in its Chrome browser over the past month than in the prior two years combined, crediting the spike to its use of artificial intelligence. According to figures shared by the company and reported by TechCrunch, the two most recent versions of Chrome – both released in June – contained patches for 1,072 flaws. That exceeds the 1,036 fixes made across the 23 releases that rolled out in the preceding two years.
The data, drawn from a white paper detailing Google’s efforts to use AI for finding and patching flaws faster, shows an exponential increase. For context, Chrome version 126, released in June 2024, contained far fewer patches than the most recent milestone releases, Chrome 149 and 150, which arrived last month. Doug Turner, Chrome’s director of engineering, told TechCrunch that large language models have “fundamentally shifted the economics of cybersecurity, transforming vulnerability discovery into an automated, industrial-scale operation.” He added that by applying models like Gemini, Google is “preemptively fixing vulnerabilities, outpacing our adversaries and making Chrome safer with every update.”
Cybersecurity experts have warned since the advent of large language models that AI would enable attackers to find bugs at an unprecedented scale. The numbers from Google, presented in a chart within the white paper, suggest that defenders are now harnessing the same technology to stay ahead.
Google is not alone in experiencing an AI-driven increase. Earlier this month, Microsoft announced a record 570 security patches across its product lines during its scheduled “Patch Tuesday” cycle. The company cited its own use of AI to explain the sudden jump. In contrast, Apple does not appear to be seeing the same exponential growth. An independent tally shows Apple has remedied 482 bugs so far in 2026, roughly on track to match or slightly exceed last year’s total, and comparable to the number it addressed in 2015. Apple did not respond to a request for comment from TechCrunch.
These figures highlight a broader industry shift: as AI lowers the barrier to finding software flaws, major tech firms are racing to integrate automated systems into their security workflows. The resulting increase in fixes may help protect users from emerging threats, but it also underscores the scale of hidden vulnerabilities that persist in widely used software.
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