Google Fires Employee for Public Protest Against Israel at Tech Event

Google confirmed that it terminated an employee who staged a public protest against Israel during a tech event. The employee disrupted a presentation by Google Israel's managing director, Barak Regev, by shouting against Project Nimbus, a $1.2 billion contract between Google and Israel's government.

Protest at Tech Event

The Google engineer protested during a presentation by Barak Regev at Mind the Tech, an annual Israeli tech conference in New York City. The employee's protest was captured on video, where they expressed refusal to build technology that supports genocide, apartheid, or surveillance.

Google's Response

Google confirmed the termination of the employee to CNBC, stating that the disruption of an official company-sponsored event was a violation of company policies. The company emphasized that such behavior is not acceptable regardless of the issue being protested.

Concerns Over Project Nimbus

Project Nimbus, the $1.2 billion cloud-computing contract between Google, Amazon, and Israel's government, has raised concerns among Google workers. Some employees fear that the project could put Palestinian community members at risk, leading to protests and discussions within the company.

Alphabet Worker's Union and CEO Sundar Pichai

The incident at the tech event follows other recent developments within Google, including the layoff of the YouTube music team and calls for Alphabet and Google CEO, Sundar Pichai, to resign. The Alphabet Worker's Union raised concerns about the treatment of workers, while recent AI failures have also impacted the company's reputation.

On a separate note, Axel Springer, Business Insider's parent company, has filed a $2.3 billion suit against Google, alleging losses related to the company's advertising practices. These events highlight ongoing challenges and controversies within the tech giant.

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By: kniemeyer@insider.com (Kenneth Niemeyer)
Title: Google Fires Employee for Public Protest Against Israel at Tech Event
Sourced From: www.businessinsider.com/google-employee-fired-after-protesting-against-israel-2024-3
Published Date: Sat, 09 Mar 2024 21:51:55 +0000