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Google has officially lifted the ban on it since 2018: not developing artificial intelligence for military and surveillance uses. Behind a discourse of responsibility and alignment with democratic values, this turnaround marks the assumed integration of the technological giant in the world race at the defense AI.
A principle that has become a strategic brake
In 2018, Google had given in to internal pressure and given up Project Mavena contract with the pentagon aimed at using AI for drone images analysis. This controversy had led the company to register in its ethical principles an explicit prohibition of any use of AI in armaments and surveillance.
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Six years later, the red line disappears. In a blog post, James Manyika, vice-president of research, and Demis Hassabis, CEO of Deepmind, evoke a new commitment in favor of a “responsible” AI, without directly mentioning the abolition of the clause prohibiting military uses . Google justifies this change by the need for democracies to maintain a technological advance in the face of authoritarian regimes.
Geopolitical competition and economic pressure
The announcement comes in a context of Strengthening collaborations between Big Tech and the military sector. Microsoft and Amazon already have strategic contracts with the Pentagon, in particular via the Joint Warfighter Cloud Capability (JWCC)a secure cloud project for the American army. OPENAI also changed its own rules last year to authorize government and defense uses.
Google could not stay away from this expanding market. L’Military represents a major economic issuewith research and development budgets in sharp increase in the United States, China and Europe.
Google’s choice is also a response to internal voltages. The company has been under pressure for several months due to His collaboration with Israel as part of the Nimbus projectwhich provides for the supply of AI and Cloud Computing solutions to the Israeli Defense Ministry. Employees denounce a growing opacity in the management of these contracts.
