ISLAMABAD: Hundreds of employees at Google have urged the company to block the use of its artificial intelligence tools in classified military work with the Pentagon, raising ethical concerns over potential misuse, CBS News reported on Monday.
In an open letter addressed to CEO Sundar Pichai, workers said the company should refuse to make its AI systems available for classified defence projects.
The employees warned that such cooperation could lead to the use of AI in “inhumane or extremely harmful ways,” including lethal autonomous weapons and mass surveillance.
They argued that working on classified military systems would limit transparency and accountability, making it difficult to ensure ethical safeguards are enforced.
The letter comes amid reports that Google is in talks with the U.S. Department of Defense to deploy its AI technologies in classified environments.
Signatories said their proximity to advanced AI systems places a responsibility on them to prevent misuse, urging leadership to reject any such agreements.
They also warned that proceeding with military AI work could damage Google’s reputation and contradict its stated mission of developing technology for the broader benefit of humanity.
The protest reflects a wider debate within the tech industry over the role of artificial intelligence in warfare and national security.
It also echoes earlier internal opposition at Google, including the 2018 backlash against Project Maven, which led the company to withdraw from a Pentagon drone AI program.
More than 600 employees, including staff from Google’s AI divisions, are reported to have signed the letter, according to The Washington Post.
The dispute highlights growing tension between governments seeking to integrate AI into defence operations and tech workers pushing back against its militarisation.
