Close Menu

    Subscribe to Updates

    Get the latest creative news from FooBar about art, design and business.

    What's Hot

    Don’t toss your Windows 10 PC! Try switching to KDE Plasma instead

    Windows 10 gets an extra year of free security updates (with a catch)

    Philps Hue smart lights are already pricey. They’re about to get pricier

    Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram
    • Artificial Intelligence
    • Business Technology
    • Cryptocurrency
    • Gadgets
    • Gaming
    • Health
    • Software and Apps
    • Technology
    Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram Pinterest Vimeo
    Tech AI Verse
    • Home
    • Artificial Intelligence

      Apple sued by shareholders for allegedly overstating AI progress

      June 22, 2025

      How far will AI go to defend its own survival?

      June 2, 2025

      The internet thinks this video from Gaza is AI. Here’s how we proved it isn’t.

      May 30, 2025

      Nvidia CEO hails Trump’s plan to rescind some export curbs on AI chips to China

      May 22, 2025

      AI poses a bigger threat to women’s work, than men’s, report says

      May 21, 2025
    • Business

      Google links massive cloud outage to API management issue

      June 13, 2025

      The EU challenges Google and Cloudflare with its very own DNS resolver that can filter dangerous traffic

      June 11, 2025

      These two Ivanti bugs are allowing hackers to target cloud instances

      May 21, 2025

      How cloud and AI transform and improve customer experiences

      May 10, 2025

      Cookie-Bite attack PoC uses Chrome extension to steal session tokens

      April 22, 2025
    • Crypto

      How Plume Drove a 100% Jump in RWA Holders to Overtake Ethereum

      June 24, 2025

      $400 Million SHIB Supply Zone Might Prevent Shiba Inu From Ending Downtrend

      June 24, 2025

      Turkey Overhauls Crypto Regulations to Stop Money Laundering

      June 24, 2025

      What Crypto Whales Are Buying After Israel-Iran Ceasefire Announcement

      June 24, 2025

      Midnight Network Tokenomics Introduces Radically Accessible and Fair Token Distribution Model 

      June 24, 2025
    • Technology

      Don’t toss your Windows 10 PC! Try switching to KDE Plasma instead

      June 25, 2025

      Windows 10 gets an extra year of free security updates (with a catch)

      June 25, 2025

      Philps Hue smart lights are already pricey. They’re about to get pricier

      June 25, 2025

      Amazon’s Fire TV Stick 4K drops to its best price of the year

      June 25, 2025

      The state of DTC marketing in 2025: How brands and agencies are leveraging data and automation to fuel ROI

      June 25, 2025
    • Others
      • Gadgets
      • Gaming
      • Health
      • Software and Apps
    Shop Now
    Tech AI Verse
    You are at:Home»Artificial Intelligence»Microsoft terminates jobs of engineers who protested use of AI products by Israel’s military
    Artificial Intelligence

    Microsoft terminates jobs of engineers who protested use of AI products by Israel’s military

    TechAiVerseBy TechAiVerseApril 9, 2025No Comments4 Mins Read0 Views
    Facebook Twitter Pinterest Telegram LinkedIn Tumblr Email Reddit
    Microsoft terminates jobs of engineers who protested use of AI products by Israel’s military
    Share
    Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest WhatsApp Email

    Microsoft terminates jobs of engineers who protested use of AI products by Israel’s military

    Microsoft terminated the employment of two software engineers who protested at company events on Friday over the Israeli military’s use of the company’s artificial intelligence products, according to documents viewed by CNBC.

    Ibtihal Aboussad, a software engineer in the company’s AI division who is based in Canada, was fired on Monday over “just cause, wilful misconduct, disobedience or wilful neglect of duty,” according to one of the documents.

    Another Microsoft software engineer, Vaniya Agrawal, had said she would resign from the company on Friday, April 11. But Microsoft terminated her role on Monday, according to an internal message viewed by CNBC. The company wrote that it “has decided to make your resignation immediately effective today.”

    Both employees chose Microsoft’s 50th anniversary event to publicly voice their criticism. What Microsoft had hoped would be a celebratory period has turned into a brutal few days for the company, which is being hit, along with the rest of the market, by President Donald Trump’s widespread tariffs. It’s a topic that CEO Satya Nadella and his two predecessors, Bill Gates and Steve Ballmer, were forced to uncomfortably confront on Friday in an interview with CNBC’s Andrew Ross Sorkin.

    “As a Microsoft shareholder, this kind of thing is not good,” Ballmer said, about the tariffs.

    Meanwhile, the celebration itself captured headlines more for the protesters’ shared message than for Microsoft’s half-century of accomplishments.

    Microsoft didn’t immediately provide a comment.

    The first interruption on Friday came from Aboussad, who stood up during Microsoft AI CEO Mustafa Suleyman’s speech.

    “Mustafa, shame on you,” Aboussad said as she walked towards the stage at the event in Redmond, Washington. “You claim that you care for using AI for good, but Microsoft sells AI weapons to the Israeli military. Fifty thousand people have died, and Microsoft powers this genocide in our region.”

    Aboussad also called Suleyman a “war profiteer.”

    “You have blood on your hands,” she said before being swiftly escorted out. “All of Microsoft has blood on its hands.”

    Shortly after the interruption, Aboussad sent an email, which was viewed by CNBC, to Suleyman and other Microsoft executives, including CEO Satya Nadella, finance chief Amy Hood, operating chief Carolina Dybeck Happe and Brad Smith, the company’s president.

    “I spoke up today because after learning that my org was powering the genocide of my people in Palestine, I saw no other moral choice,” Aboussad wrote in the email. “This is especially true when I’ve witnessed how Microsoft has tried to quell and suppress any dissent from my coworkers who tried to raise this issue.”

    Aboussad continued in the email, “I did not sign up to write code that violates human rights,” adding a link to a “No Azure for Apartheid” petition.

    Microsoft wrote in the internal message that Aboussad’s email to executives served as “an admission that you deliberately and willfully engaged in your earlier misconduct.” The company also said that Abousssad could have raised concerns “confidentially with your manager, or with Global Employee Relations. Instead, you chose to intentionally disrupt the speech of Microsoft AI CEO Mustafa Suleyman.”

    The document went on to say that Microsoft “has concluded that your misconduct was designed to gain notoriety and cause maximum disruption to this highly anticipated event.”

    “Immediate cessation of your employment is the only appropriate response,” Microsoft wrote.

    At a separate Microsoft event with executives on Friday, Agrawal interrupted a speech from Nadella with a similar protest and sent an email to executives afterward.

    “You may have seen me stand up earlier today to call out Satya during his speech at the Microsoft 50th anniversary,” Agrawal wrote in the email, which was viewed by CNBC, on Friday. “Over the past 1.5 years, I’ve grown more aware of Microsoft’s growing role in the military-industrial complex.”

    Agrawal wrote that Microsoft is “complicit” as a “digital weapons manufacturer that powers surveillance, apartheid, and genocide,” adding that “by working for this company, we are all complicit.”

    A Microsoft spokesperson said Friday that the company is committed to adhering to the highest standards of business practices.

    “We provide many avenues for all voices to be heard. Importantly, we ask that this be done in a way that does not cause a business disruption. If that happens, we ask participants to relocate,” the spokesperson said.

    Hayden Field, CNBC

    Hayden Field is a CNBC reporter

    Jordan Novet, CNBC

    contributed

    .

    Share. Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn Reddit WhatsApp Telegram Email
    Previous ArticleSamsung launches Galaxy Ring in Malaysia for RM2099
    Next Article Victory for DOGE as appeals court reinstates access to personal data
    TechAiVerse
    • Website

    Jonathan is a tech enthusiast and the mind behind Tech AI Verse. With a passion for artificial intelligence, consumer tech, and emerging innovations, he deliver clear, insightful content to keep readers informed. From cutting-edge gadgets to AI advancements and cryptocurrency trends, Jonathan breaks down complex topics to make technology accessible to all.

    Related Posts

    Apple sued by shareholders for allegedly overstating AI progress

    June 22, 2025

    How far will AI go to defend its own survival?

    June 2, 2025

    The internet thinks this video from Gaza is AI. Here’s how we proved it isn’t.

    May 30, 2025
    Leave A Reply Cancel Reply

    Top Posts

    New Akira ransomware decryptor cracks encryptions keys using GPUs

    March 16, 202525 Views

    OpenAI details ChatGPT-o3, o4-mini, o4-mini-high usage limits

    April 19, 202521 Views

    Rsync replaced with openrsync on macOS Sequoia

    April 7, 202515 Views

    Arizona moves to ban AI use in reviewing medical claims

    March 12, 202511 Views
    Don't Miss
    Technology June 25, 2025

    Don’t toss your Windows 10 PC! Try switching to KDE Plasma instead

    Don’t toss your Windows 10 PC! Try switching to KDE Plasma instead Image: KDE Come…

    Windows 10 gets an extra year of free security updates (with a catch)

    Philps Hue smart lights are already pricey. They’re about to get pricier

    Amazon’s Fire TV Stick 4K drops to its best price of the year

    Stay In Touch
    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • Pinterest
    • Instagram
    • YouTube
    • Vimeo

    Subscribe to Updates

    Get the latest creative news from SmartMag about art & design.

    About Us
    About Us

    Welcome to Tech AI Verse, your go-to destination for everything technology! We bring you the latest news, trends, and insights from the ever-evolving world of tech. Our coverage spans across global technology industry updates, artificial intelligence advancements, machine learning ethics, and automation innovations. Stay connected with us as we explore the limitless possibilities of technology!

    Facebook X (Twitter) Pinterest YouTube WhatsApp
    Our Picks

    Don’t toss your Windows 10 PC! Try switching to KDE Plasma instead

    June 25, 20250 Views

    Windows 10 gets an extra year of free security updates (with a catch)

    June 25, 20250 Views

    Philps Hue smart lights are already pricey. They’re about to get pricier

    June 25, 20250 Views
    Most Popular

    Ethereum must hold $2,000 support or risk dropping to $1,850 – Here’s why

    March 12, 20250 Views

    Xiaomi 15 Ultra Officially Launched in China, Malaysia launch to follow after global event

    March 12, 20250 Views

    Apple thinks people won’t use MagSafe on iPhone 16e

    March 12, 20250 Views
    © 2025 TechAiVerse. Designed by Divya Tech.
    • Home
    • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Privacy Policy
    • Terms & Conditions

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.