Five Microsoft employees were ejected from a company town hall meeting after staging a protest against the company’s provision of artificial intelligence and cloud computing services to the Israeli military.
The demonstration took place on Monday at Microsoft’s headquarters in Redmond, Washington, during a presentation by CEO Satya Nadella. The protest followed an investigation by The Associated Press, which reported that advanced AI models developed by Microsoft and OpenAI had been used in an Israeli military programme to select bombing targets during recent conflicts in Gaza and Lebanon. The report also highlighted a 2023 Israeli airstrike that mistakenly hit a civilian vehicle, killing three young girls and their grandmother.
During Nadella’s address, the protesting employees stood up, revealing T-shirts that, when aligned, formed the message: “Does Our Code Kill Kids, Satya?” Footage of the incident, which was live-streamed to Microsoft employees worldwide, showed Nadella continuing his speech without acknowledging the demonstration. Security personnel swiftly intervened, escorting the protesters from the room.
Microsoft has not responded to requests for comment regarding the protest or whether disciplinary action will be taken against the employees involved. The company also declined to comment on The Associated Press report detailing its contracts with the Israeli military.
