Five Microsoft employees were removed from a meeting with CEO Satya Nadella for protesting against the company's contracts with the Israeli military.
As reported by the Associated Press, the protest followed an AP investigation which found that AI models from Microsoft and OpenAI had been used as part of a military program to select bombing targets in Gaza and Lebanon.
The AP's investigation found one case in 2023 when an Israeli airstrike went awry and struck a family vehicle, killing three children and their grandmother.
The employees attended the meeting, during which Nadella was discussing new products at a company "town hall" at the tech giant's Redmond, Washington, campus, wearing T-Shirts with the message: "Does our code kill kids, Satya?"
Footage of the event was shared via social media.
Nadella did not acknowledge the protestors, and security quietly removed them from the room.
Microsoft told the AP in a statement: "We provide many avenues for all voices to be heard. Importantly, we ask that this be done in a way that does not cause a business disruption. If that happens, we ask participants to relocate. We are committed to ensuring our business practices uphold the highest standards.”
DCD has contacted Microsoft for more information, including whether the employees will face disciplinary action.
Microsoft previously fired two employees in October 2024 for holding a vigil for Palestinian refugees at the company headquarters.
While Microsoft was not a winner of the controversial Nimbus contract with the Israeli government - a deal that prevented winners Google or Amazon from halting services as a whole, or to particular departments, including with military applications - the company has been reported as providing cloud and AI services throughout the Israel/Gaza conflict since at least April 2024.
Those reports re-emerged in January of this year with claims that Microsoft provided at least $10 million in computing and storage services throughout the conflict. Al Jazeera estimates that since October 7, 2023, more than 46,700 Palestinians have been killed. Israel and Gaza reached a ceasefire agreement on January 15, 2025.
At the time of the Nimbus contract, several employees of both AWS and Google protested against it, with Google then firing more than 50 employees.
Earlier this month, Google edited its AI principles to no longer include a pledge not to provide artificial intelligence (AI) for use in weapons systems or surveillance tools. Microsoft's AI standard does not explicitly say the company will not engage in these practices, however, it does state that it is committed to a "responsible approach to AI" while respecting human rights.
