Google Quietly Removes AI Ethics Pledge, Sparking Outrage
In a surprising move, Google has quietly removed a key ethical commitment from its AI principles, signaling a major shift in the company’s stance on artificial intelligence. Until recently, Google had pledged not to develop AI for weapons, surveillance, or technologies that could cause overall harm. This promise, first introduced in response to employee concerns in 2018, has now been erased from the company’s official guidelines. The change has sparked alarm among former employees and human rights advocates, who fear the tech giant is moving toward greater involvement in military and surveillance projects.
The company’s announcement came just weeks into U.S. President Donald Trump’s second term. Google executives, including James Manyika, senior vice president for research, technology, and society, and Demis Hassabis, CEO of its AI research arm DeepMind, framed the decision as a response to a “complex geopolitical landscape.” They argued that democratic nations should lead AI development while upholding values like freedom and human rights. However, critics worry that this shift opens the door for Google to collaborate on AI-driven military and security applications, contradicting its previous stance.
For years, Google employees have voiced opposition to their company’s involvement in warfare. In 2018, thousands of workers protested Google’s participation in Project Maven, a Pentagon initiative using AI for drone surveillance. Their activism led the company to publicly commit to ethical AI development, which included a promise to avoid weapons and surveillance projects. Now, with that pledge removed, many fear that Google’s leadership is disregarding years of employee advocacy and ethical considerations in favor of aligning with government interests.
Former Google AI ethics researcher Margaret Mitchell criticized the change, stating that it erases the work of countless activists and researchers who fought for responsible AI policies within the company. Human rights groups have also condemned the decision, with Democracy for the Arab World Now labeling Google a “corporate war machine.” The company insists that it will maintain oversight and align its work with international human rights standards, but many remain skeptical about how those safeguards will be enforced.
This development comes amid broader concerns that major tech companies are abandoning previous commitments to ethical and inclusive practices. Following Trump’s reelection, some companies have rolled back diversity and inclusion initiatives in response to political pressure. Google’s decision to remove its AI ethics pledge reflects a growing trend of corporate alignment with government priorities, raising urgent questions about the future of AI ethics and the role of technology in global security.
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