Over 1,200 STEM students and workers have pledged not to work at Google or Amazon due to their involvement in Project Nimbus, a $1.2 billion project providing cloud computing infrastructure to the Israeli government. Critics say the project enables Israeli surveillance of Palestinians and occupation of their land. Some tech workers have demanded their employers withdraw from the project to cut ties with the Israeli military. The pledge was organized by No Tech for Apartheid, condemning Google and Amazon for making Israeli apartheid more efficient and deadly for Palestinians.
Investigations have shown that Google is offering advanced artificial intelligence and machine learning capabilities to the Israeli government through Project Nimbus. The technology could provide Israel with face detection, image categorization, object tracking, and sentiment analysis tools. State-owned weapons manufacturers and entities facilitating Israeli settlements on Palestinian lands are among the cloud customers listed in the investigation findings.
Google has maintained that their work with the Israeli government is focused on non-sensitive governmental sectors such as finance, health, transportation, and education. Amazon has echoed similar sentiments, emphasizing their focus on providing cloud technology benefits to all customers globally. Google workers associated with No Tech for Apartheid have staged sit-in protests at Google offices in response to Project Nimbus, resulting in layoffs of 28 employees.
The pledge and demand to withdraw from Project Nimbus reflect growing concerns about tech companies’ involvement in projects aiding in the Israeli surveillance and occupation of Palestinians. The issue has brought to light ethical questions about the role of technology in supporting systems of oppression and violence.
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https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/explained-global/project-nimbus-google-amazon-israel-9412210/lite/
