Google Employees Denounce Firm's Military Drone Work In Letter To CEO

Minimalist · Apr 10, 2018

In response to Google's involvement in beefing up image recognition for drones, a growing number of employees say its time for the multifaceted tech giant to draw the line.

Thousands of Google employees have reportedly signed a letter to CEO Sundar Pichai denouncing the company's work on military image-recognition capabilities, according to a New York Times report. Addressed to Pichai, the letter discusses Google's role in developing military drone software as part of "Project Maven," and argues that the tech company should not be in "the business of war."
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/janetw...companys-military-drone-work-in-letter-to-ceo

Minimalist · May 14, 2018

Google Employees Resign Over Company's Pentagon Contract, Ethical Habits

A group of Google employees has reportedly resigned in protest of the company's contractual work for the U.S. military, which has been strengthening its remote image-recognition abilities with the tech giant's help.

Gizmodo reported today that around a dozen Google workers have resigned in response to the firm's involvement with the Pentagon, which employees say runs counter to Google's stated ethical principles. The former Google workers were also reportedly motivated by the tech giant's behavior in other spheres, including transparency and trust.

Earlier this year, news outlets reported on Google's work to help improve military image- and target-recognition software as part its work on Project Maven. Among those who criticized the project were thousands of Google employees, who signed a letter to CEO Sundar Pichai denouncing the company's involvement in warfare.
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https://www.forbes.com/sites/janetw...n-over-firms-pentagon-contract-ethical-habits

RockLobster · May 14, 2018

Very dangerous technology. I think some people would sell out the entire human race for a buck.
Good to see at least some people in the tech industry still have a sense of right and wrong left in them.

zapjb · May 15, 2018

I bet the majority of the workers who resigned have more than 10 years of living expenses saved up. It's easier to be principled when basic needs of food, shelter & clothing aren't threatened.

Still good on them.

xxJackxx · May 15, 2018

RockLobster said: ↑

Very dangerous technology. I think some people would sell out the entire human race for a buck.
Good to see at least some people in the tech industry still have a sense of right and wrong left in them.
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Agreed, but the problem becomes that the people with a sense of right and wrong are walking away from it, to be replaced by people who do not. At best this leaves us in the same situation. Most likely it leaves us in the hands of those that do not care.

Minimalist · Jun 1, 2018

Google reportedly won’t renew controversial drone imaging program

It looks like the drama surrounding Google's controversial involvement in Project Maven is coming to an end. Yet another report from Gizmodo on the subject says that Google won't be renewing the project once its current contract runs out.
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https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/201...nt-renew-controversial-drone-imaging-program/

guest · Jun 26, 2018

Ex-Pentagon official behind Project Maven ‘alarmed’ by Google withdrawal
He says the initiative could save lives.
June 26, 2018
https://www.engadget.com/2018/06/26/pentagon-official-project-maven-alarmed-google-withdrawal/

Now, former Deputy Defense Secretary Robert Work, who started the Project Maven initiative, is saying he's "alarmed" by Google's decision to walk away from the program.

Bloomberg reports that Work shared his concerns about the move during an event on tech in the military held today in Washington. "I fully agree that it might wind up with us taking a shot, but it could easily save lives. I believe the Google employees created an enormous moral hazard for themselves."

"They say, look this data could potentially, down the line, at some point, cause harm to human life," said Work. "I said, yes but it might save 500 Americans or 500 allies or 500 innocent civilians." Work also called out Google's work with China, saying any AI endeavors that include Chinese firms "will ultimately wind up in the hands of the Chinese military."
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Krusty · Jun 27, 2018

Vint Cerf: The 'father of the internet' on Google, war and 'artificial idiocy'

With his three-piece suit and trim beard, Vint Cerf looks like Hollywood's idea of the "father of the internet" — or at least, one of its "fathers".

Along with Robert Kahn, Dr Cerf can claim that title. He helped build the internet's fundamental architecture in the 1970s — creating the transmission protocols that allow computers to talk to each other — when the project was still funded by the military.

Today, ties to the armed forces are causing trouble for Google, where Dr Cerf now holds the only-in-America title of "Chief Internet Evangelist".
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In late May, the New York Times reported that Google's involvement with the US Department of Defence's Maven Program, which aims to use artificial intelligence to assess video, had set off "an existential crisis" internally.

Employees resigned, morally opposed to the work that some feared could be used to facilitate drone strikes. About 4,000 workers signed a petition demanding "a clear policy stating that neither Google nor its contractors will ever build warfare technology".

By June, Google CEO Sundar Pichai had unveiled a set of seven principles to guide the company's artificial intelligence work, and promised not to pursue "weapons or other technologies whose principal purpose or implementation is to cause or directly facilitate injury to people".

Google will not renew its Maven contract with the Pentagon.
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Minimalist · Jul 4, 2018

Google’s artificial intelligence ethics won't curb war by algorithm

New ethical principles restrict the work of Google's AI scientists on military projects, but key questions about the technology industry and the future of war remain unanswered
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http://www.wired.co.uk/article/google-project-maven-drone-warfare-artificial-intelligence

guest · Mar 2, 2019

Google Hedges on Promise to End Military Drone AI Contract
March 1, 2019
https://theintercept.com/2019/03/01/google-project-maven-contract/

In an email sent this week by Kent Walker, Google’s senior vice president for global affairs, the Silicon Valley giant appeared to hedge on its commitment to fully cut ties with the drone initiative.
The email, obtained by The Intercept, reiterates the company’s pledge not to renew its contract.

The email did not clarify how Google would be compensated for the continued use of its cloud servers, the name of the new contractor, or what specific Project Maven-related workloads would be supported by the firm.
The email also noted that the company has worked closely with the “DoD to make the transition in a way that is consistent with our AI Principles and contractual commitments.”
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guest · Mar 25, 2019

Pentagon Says Google’s Drone Work Is Exempt From Freedom of Information Act
March 25, 2019
https://theintercept.com/2019/03/25/google-project-maven-pentagon-foia/

In response to a Freedom of Information Act request I filed more than a year ago, seeking documents related to Project Maven’s use of Google technology, the Defense Department said that it had discovered 5,000 pages of relevant material — and that every single page was exempt from disclosure.

The memo, signed by Defense Department Acting Chief Management Officer Lisa Hershman, makes the argument that Project Maven is so sensitive that disclosing essentially any facts about it could cause death and destruction.
According to Steven Aftergood, director of the Federation of American Scientists Project on Government Secrecy, the FOIA request denial is “a disappointing move” by the Defense Department.

The “blanket use of the [critical infrastructure information] exemption represents a continuing temptation for agencies since it can be a ‘simple,’ expeditious way to close out FOIA cases,” he said
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