Protest Erupts at Google Cloud Conference Over Contract with Israeli Military
Protests unfolded at the Google Cloud Next conference in San Francisco on Tuesday as employees voiced their opposition to the company’s contract with Israel’s military. The demonstration aimed to raise pressure on Google during its annual event showcasing its latest products and technology.
Around 30 protesters, which included former Google employees and local community activists, gathered on Howard Street near the convention center, chaining themselves together. They held up banners with the words, Google Project Nimbus fuels Israeli apartheid, expressing their concerns about Google’s $1.2-billion contract with the Israeli government and military.
Critics, including a group of current Google workers, argue that this contract neglects ethical considerations that many outspoken members of the company’s workforce have been advocating for in recent years. The opposition stems from worries that Google’s technology could potentially aid the Israeli Defense Forces in surveilling and causing harm to Palestinians.
This is not the first time Google has faced employee disapproval over its involvement in controversial contracts. Google workers have previously objected to military contracts, including projects with U.S. Customs and Border Protection and a defense program focused on artificial intelligence tools for drone strikes. Employees claim that the company has suppressed information-sharing, isolated contentious projects, and enforced a workplace culture that punishes dissent.
The exact details of Google’s contract with the Israeli government and the capabilities it entails have not been disclosed, prompting further criticism. The contract reportedly includes providing the Israeli government with an all-encompassing cloud solution. However, in July 2022, The Intercept published training documents suggesting that Google is offering software capable of recognizing individuals, evaluating emotional states from facial expressions, and tracking objects in video footage.
Google Cloud, despite public outcry, has been proud to support Israel’s government. The company’s spokesperson, Atle Erlingsson, insisted that Project Nimbus is not aimed at highly sensitive military tasks, although he acknowledged that it does grant Israel’s military access to Google technology.
Former Google employee Ariel Koren, who has long been critical of Project Nimbus, highlighted the unfortunate timing of the contract’s profitability milestone coinciding with the 75th anniversary of the Nakba. The Nakba refers to the displacement and dispossession of Palestinians during the 1948 Arab-Israeli war. Koren, in a memo published upon her resignation, criticized Google’s apathy towards concerns over human rights violations in Palestine.
Protest actions are seen as necessary by activists who believe that more needs to be done to disrupt business as usual for Google. Mohammad Khatami, a YouTube software engineer based in New York, participated in a small protest opposing Project Nimbus at an Amazon Web Services conference in July. The recent layoffs at Google also motivated employees like Khatami to join the Alphabet Workers Union, which supports members in anti-military efforts.
Google has faced ongoing challenges in balancing the demands of its workforce with its business partnerships. The controversy surrounding Project Nimbus highlights the growing pressure on tech companies to consider the ethical implications of their contracts and actively address workforce concerns.
While Google has yet to comment on the protest and workers’ objections, it remains to be seen how the company will respond to the criticism and demands for greater corporate responsibility in the future.
