Google has entered into a contract with the Israeli Ministry of Defense, providing cloud computing services and sparking controversy. The contract, dated March 27, 2024, shows Google billing the Israeli Ministry of Defense over $1 million for consulting services to expand its Google Cloud access.
The Israeli Ministry of Defense has its own “landing zone” into Google Cloud, a secure entry point to Google-provided computing infrastructure. This allows the ministry to store and process data, and access AI services. The contract is part of Project Nimbus, a controversial $1.2 billion cloud computing and AI agreement between the Israeli government and two tech companies: Google and Amazon.
Despite Google’s assertion that its work for the Israeli government is largely for civilian purposes, the contract has raised concerns among Google employees. Some employees have resigned, and others have been fired over a project providing AI and cloud services to the Israeli government and military. The protest group, No Tech for Apartheid, has around 40 Google employees closely involved in organizing, with hundreds more workers sympathetic to their goals.
Read more at: time.com