Leaked Documents Reveal Google and Microsoft’s Deep Military Involvement in Israel’s War on Gaza

On January 21, The Washington Post published a report documenting Google’s provision of advanced artificial intelligence (AI) technology to the Israeli military since the beginning of the war on Gaza.

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Just two days later, an investigative report by The Guardian, based on leaked secret documents, confirmed that the Israeli army had increasingly relied on Microsoft’s cloud computing and AI systems during its most intense bombing phases in Gaza.

As part of its extermination war, Israel has used advanced technological systems, such as AI models Gospel and Lavender, to determine bombing targets. These newly revealed documents highlight how major American tech companies have supported Israeli military operations—support that, until now, lacked solid documentation or clear evidence. While these companies have denied any involvement in military operations, some indicators and statements from Israeli military officials have pointed to their role.

For the first time, reports and internal files confirm this direct cooperation between major tech companies and the Israeli army in the war on Gaza.

A New Partnership with Google

In May 2024, nearly 200 employees at DeepMind, Google’s artificial intelligence division, signed a letter demanding that the tech giant cancel its contracts with military institutions worldwide. A copy of the letter, obtained by Time magazine and reported in August 2024, revealed growing internal concerns over the sale of AI technologies to armies engaged in wars, which employees described as a violation of Google’s own AI ethics guidelines.

Although the employees emphasized that their letter was not linked to any specific war at the time of writing—an attempt to avoid targeting by the Israeli lobby in the United States—it nonetheless served as a clear sign of escalating internal divisions within Google. On one side, AI researchers pledged not to participate in developing military technologies, while on the other, the cloud computing division continued selling AI services—including those developed by DeepMind—to various governments and armies, including the Israeli military, particularly through the Nimbus Project.

This contradiction sheds light on the terms of Google’s acquisition of the British AI company DeepMind in 2014. The acquisition agreement included a commitment not to use DeepMind’s technologies for military or security purposes. This pledge was reaffirmed by DeepMind’s founder, Demis Hassabis, in a 2015 interview. Today, Hassabis oversees the development of various AI systems under the Google DeepMind brand, which includes advanced applications in image, video, and audio processing, as well as the AI assistant Gemini.

Google publicly states that it does not allow its AI technologies to be used in applications that could harm humans. The company’s human rights programs also claim to conduct rigorous product and policy reviews to ensure compliance with international standards, including the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Google even encourages employees to report any violations or concerns related to the company’s activities.

However, internal company documents obtained by The Washington Post reveal that Google has indeed provided direct assistance to the Israeli Ministry of Defense and military.

Following the Al-Aqsa Flood operation, a Google Cloud employee reportedly pushed for expanded access to AI technologies for Israel’s defense ministry. Documents indicate that the Israeli ministry urgently sought to expand its use of Google’s Vertex AI platform, which allows customers to apply AI algorithms to their private data.

According to Google’s official site, Vertex AI is an integrated tool for developing and deploying machine learning and AI solutions. It provides an environment combining data engineering, data science, and machine learning, making collaboration more efficient. The platform enables AI model training and customization for various applications, offering automated and advanced tools for users.

A document dated November 2023 shows a Google employee thanking a colleague for expediting Israel’s defense ministry’s request. Throughout spring and summer 2024, new internal requests surfaced from Google employees advocating for greater access to AI capabilities for the Israeli military. Another document revealed that a Google employee, in late November 2023, pushed for granting the Israeli military access to Gemini AI to develop tools for processing documents and audio files.

Google’s Military Involvement

Google’s involvement became undeniable, especially after details of the Nimbus Project came to light. The company’s support for Israel’s war on Gaza was so blatant that it even sacrificed its corporate reputation, firing over 50 employees in April 2024 for protesting against Nimbus.

Three years earlier, the Israeli government had signed a $1.2 billion contract with Google and Amazon to establish regional data centers for cloud services, ensuring service continuity even if international pressures arose to boycott Israel. Officially, Nimbus was presented as merely a cloud infrastructure project, but investigative reports suggested otherwise.

A 2022 report by The Intercept, citing leaked internal training videos and documents from Google, revealed that Nimbus would provide Israel with a full suite of machine learning and AI tools. These technologies, according to internal materials, would enhance Israel’s surveillance capabilities, automated image classification, object tracking, and even emotional analysis—claiming to assess emotional content in images, speech, and writing.

Publicly, Google downplayed its military involvement in Nimbus, with a spokesperson stating:
“This project is not intended for highly sensitive or classified military tasks related to weapons or intelligence. It is designed for general government ministries that comply with our acceptable use policy.”

However, even before the latest leaks, public statements and reports indicated Google’s deep ties with the Israeli military through Nimbus.

For example, a Wired report from July 2024 reviewed public records and statements from Israeli officials, Google, and Amazon employees, concluding that the Israeli military played a central role in shaping Nimbus since its inception.

During a Nimbus conference in February 2024, Israel’s Cyber Authority head, Gabi Portnoy, admitted:
“The contract has contributed to Israel’s military response to Hamas. Extraordinary things are happening on the battlefield due to Nimbus’s public cloud, impacting our victory—though I won’t share details.”

Microsoft’s Longstanding Ties with the Israeli Military

Surprisingly, reports on Microsoft’s involvement emerged relatively late, despite the company’s deep-rooted ties with the Israeli military. A Guardian investigation, in collaboration with +972 Magazine and Local Call, based on leaked documents from Drop Site News, confirmed Microsoft’s increasing support for the Israeli military after October 7, 2023.

Microsoft’s relationship with Israel spans decades, starting with its first research center outside the U.S., established in occupied territory in 1991. Since then, Microsoft has engaged in extensive collaboration, selling unlimited products and exchanging intelligence with the Israeli military.

Over the years, Microsoft has acquired Israeli startups linked to military intelligence units like Unit 8200. After October 7, Microsoft reportedly provided Israeli forces with advanced cloud computing, increasing the military’s reliance on its Azure platform.

Leaked documents reveal that Microsoft sold Israel’s defense ministry 19,000 hours of engineering and consulting services between October 2023 and June 2024, in a deal worth over $10 million. During the first six months of the war, Israeli military usage of Microsoft’s Azure cloud surged by 60%.

By March 2024, Israeli forces’ consumption of AI tools on Azure had increased 64-fold. Meanwhile, Israel’s military accessed OpenAI’s GPT-4 through Azure after OpenAI quietly lifted its ban on military use in January 2024.

Tech Companies as War Beneficiaries

For Google and Microsoft, participation in real-world war scenarios presents a golden opportunity to refine AI systems using high-quality battlefield data. War zones provide unique environments filled with real-life challenges that cannot be replicated in everyday testing.

For the U.S., these technologies will likely be crucial in a potential future war against China. After all, Microsoft and Google are integral to modern warfare, just as much as traditional defense contractors.

Despite their claims of ethical responsibility, these tech giants have become direct participants in crimes witnessed worldwide—often through devices running their software.