Id use my SBR AR-15 with my Hornady TAP 77gr 5.56 (NOT .223) for self defence over an AK any day.

Ive used both MANY MANY times. And the AR is just a better weapons system overall IMO.

I like AKs, and I will be picking up a Romanian underfolder after I get my Garand, but Ive just seen them fail too many times. Which makes me laugh because people always say how reliable they are. Cheap guns = cheaply built with cheap parts = unreliable.
I could make an entire thread on this, but Ill keep it short.

As for the hunting bullets in a SD weapon, there is a reason companies make HD ammo, and hunting ammo, and they are different.