AI Backing
Google has reportedly continued supplying artificial intelligence (AI) technologies to Israel’s defence apparatus despite efforts to publicly distance itself from the country’s military operations, according to an investigation by The Washington Post on Wednesday.
The report alleges that Google has supported Israel’s Defence Ministry and military with advanced AI tools since the onset of its military offensive in Gaza on October 7, 2023.
This revelation comes as some of the company’s employees openly protested Google’s involvement in the Nimbus cloud computing contract, which is tied to Israeli government operations.
Internal company documents reviewed by The Washington Post reveal that Google fast-tracked access to its Vertex AI service for the Israeli Defence Ministry.
The documents also highlight internal discussions where Google employees expressed concerns about losing potential contracts to competitors like Amazon if the company did not promptly provide Israel with access to its AI technologies.
A document from November 2023 showed a Google employee thanking a colleague for facilitating the Israeli Defence Ministry’s urgent request for AI support.
Additional records from spring and summer 2024 indicate ongoing efforts to expand the scope of AI technology provided to the Israeli military. These developments suggest that Google’s collaboration extended well beyond the immediate aftermath of the October 2023 attacks on Gaza.
More recently, in November 2024, documents revealed that the Israeli military had continued to request access to Google’s latest AI technologies, including the Gemini AI platform, designed for advanced text and voice processing. These requests came nearly a year after Gaza had endured extensive bombardment.
While the documents confirm Google’s continued AI support to Israel, they do not clarify how the Defence Ministry planned to utilise the tools or their precise role in military operations.
Google has not issued a public statement addressing these allegations. However, this is not the first time Israel has been reported to collaborate with big-tech companies to strengthen its control over Palestinians, raising renewed concerns about the ethical implications of such partnerships.
The ongoing revelations have intensified scrutiny over the role of major technology firms in global conflicts and human rights violations.
