WASHINGTON: A pro-Palestinian protest by Microsoft employees interrupted the company\u2019s 50th anniversary celebration Friday, the latest backlash over the tech industry\u2019s work to supply artificial intelligence technology to the Israeli military.
\nThe protest happened as Microsoft AI CEO Mustafa Suleyman was presenting product updates and a long-term vision for the company\u2019s AI assistant product, Copilot, to an audience that included Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates and former CEO Steve Ballmer.
\n\u201cMustafa, shame on you,\u201d shouted Microsoft employee Ibtihal Aboussad as she walked toward the stage and Suleyman paused his speech. \u201cYou claim that you care about using AI for good but Microsoft sells AI weapons to the Israeli military. Fifty-thousand people have died and Microsoft powers this genocide in our region.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThank you for your protest, I hear you,\u201d Suleyman said. Aboussad continued, shouting that he and \u201call of Microsoft\u201d had blood on their hands. She also threw onto the stage a keffiyeh scarf, which has become a symbol of support for Palestinian people, before being escorted out of the event.
\nA second protester, Microsoft employee Vaniya Agrawal, interrupted another part of the celebration during which Gates, Ballmer and current CEO Satya Nadella were on stage \u2014 the first public gathering since 2014 of the three men who have been Microsoft\u2019s CEO.
\nAn investigation by The Associated Press revealed earlier this year that AI models from Microsoft and OpenAI had been used as part of an Israeli military program to select bombing targets during the recent wars in Gaza and Lebanon. The story also contained details of an errant Israeli airstrike in 2023 that struck a vehicle carrying members of a Lebanese family, killing three young girls and their grandmother.
\nIn February, five Microsoft employees were ejected from a meeting with CEO Satya Nadella for protesting the contracts. While the February event was an internal meeting, Friday\u2019s protest was far more public \u2014 a livestreamed showcase of the company\u2019s past and future.
\n\u201cWe provide many avenues for all voices to be heard,\u201d said a statement from the company Friday. \u201cImportantly, 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.\u201d
\nMicrosoft declined to say whether it would take further action.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
WASHINGTON: A pro-Palestinian protest by Microsoft employees interrupted the company\u2019s 50th anniversary celebration Friday, the latest backlash over the tech industry\u2019s work to supply artificial intelligence technology to the Israeli military. The protest happened as Microsoft AI CEO Mustafa Suleyman was presenting product updates and a long-term vision for the company\u2019s AI assistant product, Copilot, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":470685,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-470671","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n