Tech giant Microsoft admitted on Thursday that it sold AI and cloud computing services to the Israeli military during the war in Gaza, helping in efforts to locate and rescue hostages. But to date it has found no evidence that its Azure platform and AI have been used to target or harm people in Gaza. This is the company’s first public acknowledgement of its involvement in the war.
About three months ago, it was revealed that Microsoft has a close partnership with the Israeli Defense Ministry and the military use of AI increased significantly after the Hamas attack. The Israeli military uses Azure to analyze information collected through mass surveillance.
Human rights groups have raised concerns that AI systems can be flawed but are being used to decide who or what to target, leading to the deaths of innocent people. The company said it provided software, professional services, Azure cloud storage and AI services to the Israeli military and worked with its government to protect Israeli cyberspace from external threats.
We believe the company followed the principles carefully and thoughtfully to help rescue the hostages while also respecting the privacy of civilians in Gaza.