Google to scrub US deal protested by employees

SAN FRANCISCO: Alphabet Inc´s Google will not renew a contract to help the U.S. military analyze aerial drone imagery when it expires in March, a person familiar with the matter said on Friday, as the company moves to defuse internal uproar over the deal.

The defense program, called Project Maven, set off a revolt inside Google, as factions of employees opposed Google technology being used in warfare.

The dissidents said it clashed with the company´s stated principle of doing no harm and cited risks around using a nascent artificial intelligence technology in lethal situations.

Google plans to honor what is left of its contract on Project Maven, the person said.

More than 4,600 employees signed a petition calling for Google to cancel the deal, with at least 13 employees resigning in recent weeks in protest at Google´s involvement, according to a second person familiar with the deal. Through Project Maven, Google provides artificial intelligence technology to the Pentagon to help humans detect and identify targets captured by drone images.

Company executives have defended the contract, saying its cloud computing and data analysis tools were being used for non-offensive tasks and would help save lives.

Tech publication Gizmodo first reported that Google Cloud Chief Executive Diane Greene told employees on Friday Google´s role in the program would end.