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Wednesday, January 22, 2025
Report: Documents show Google aided Israel with advanced AI tools amid war

A sign is displayed on a Google building at its campus in Mountain View, California, on Sept. 24, 2019 (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
The Washington Post says it has seen documents according to which Google employees actively assisted Israel in gaining access to certain advanced AI technology quickly after the war in Gaza began.
The report says Israel’s Defense Ministry sought to expand its use of Vertex AI, a Google service applying AI algorithms to data. One worker warned internally that a delay in granting access to the tech could push Israel to switch to competitor Amazon.
The paper notes that while the documents confirm Google’s cooperation with Israeli defense officials, they do not detail how precisely the AI technology was intended for use.