Intercept exposes contradictions in Google's Project Nimbus claims
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Google's involvement in Project Nimbus has officials worried the company could be implicated in human rights violations.
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Demonstrators carry a banner and block an entrance to the Google I/O conference in Mountain View, California on May 14, 2024. (AP)
According to The Intercept, Google has defended its controversial cloud computing contract with the Israeli government, Project Nimbus, by stating it follows the company’s standard cloud computing terms of service, though internal documents reveal the agreement operates under an "adjusted" policy tailored by Google and "Israel," the specifics of which remain unclear.
Despite widespread criticism, Google's Project Nimbus—a $1.2 billion deal—provides the Israeli government and military with access to advanced cloud and AI technologies, and while Amazon has largely remained silent, Google continues to downplay the project’s military implications, despite Israeli statements highlighting its benefit to the "defense establishment."
Google has sought to reassure critics concerned about its partnership with the Israeli government, which is under investigation by the International Criminal Court, by stating that the Project Nimbus contract adheres to the company’s standard cloud terms and regulations, which prohibit uses that violate legal rights or cause harm.
The Google Cloud terms of service, among other things, ban uses that "violate, or encourage the violation of, the legal rights of others," any "invasive" purpose, or anything "that can cause death, serious harm, or injury to individuals or groups of individuals."
However, critics argue that the terms of the contract remain non-negotiable and heavily favor the Israeli government.
A previously unpublished email from Google lawyer Edward du Boulay reveals concerns about the terms of the Project Nimbus contract, stating during the submission of Google's bid that if the company wins the contract, it would have to accept a non-negotiable agreement with terms favorable to the Israeli government, including limited ability to sue "Israel" for breaches and unilateral rights for "Israel" to impose changes to the contract.
The Intercept's analysis of Israeli government contract records reveals that the standard terms of service do not apply to Project Nimbus; instead, a modified set of terms has been implemented. The documents show that the Israeli occupation government has the authority to use the cloud services for any purpose, contradicting Google's claims that Nimbus is not intended for sensitive or military uses.
The Abolitionist Law Center, a Pennsylvania-based public interest firm, told The Intercept that it is filing a submission detailing how "Google and Amazon Web Services' provision of advanced technological services to the Israeli government through Project Nimbus violates — by its very nature — each [of the] companies' purported commitments to human rights due diligence obligations," according to staff attorney Sadaf Doost.
Doost contends, “This is most evidently demonstrated by how the Project Nimbus contract itself includes a clause granting authority to Israeli officials to modify the companies’ standard terms of use agreements in ways that have not been made clear to the public.”
Google worried Nimbus could enable human rights violations: NYT
According to the New York Times, Google is concerned that the Israeli contract could lead to human rights violations, and the tech giant, which went as far as to terminate employees opposed to the deal, fears it could harm its reputation.
Four months before the deal was signed, company officials were concerned about the deal. Google lawyers, policy team members, and external consultants—asked to assess the risks of the deal—wrote that because "sensitive customers" like the Israeli Ministry of Security and the Israeli Security Agency were included in the contract, “Google Cloud services could be used for, or linked to, the facilitation of human rights violations, including Israeli activity in the West Bank.”
The files, which had not been previously reported, revealed that despite Google's public defense of Nimbus over the past three years, the company had concerns about the contract similar to those of some employees, who claimed that the deal dragged Google into the long-standing Israeli-Palestinian issue.
The documents showed that Google provided "Israel" with the processing power needed to run applications and AI tools, including technology for analyzing images and videos to detect targets.
The company also provided services for storing and analyzing large amounts of data, along with simpler software like Google’s video conferencing system. However, the Nimbus deal became a flashpoint for debate inside Google, especially since the outbreak of the war on Gaza last year.
“We have been very clear that the Nimbus contract is for workloads running on our commercial cloud by Israeli government ministries, who agree to comply with our terms of service and acceptable use policy,” a Google spokesperson said in a statement.
A spokesperson for "Israel’s" Ministry of Finance downplayed Nimbus as merely helping the occupation become a leading tech hub and improve the day-to-day lives of Israelis.
