Google DeepMind UK Staff Vote to Unionize Over Pentagon and Israeli Military AI Deals

Image: Nbcnews

Main Takeaway

London-based DeepMind workers unionize after learning Gemini models may serve both the Pentagon and the Israeli military, demanding Google walk back both contracts.

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The deal that slipped through

Google has formally signed a classified agreement with the U.S. Department of Defense that gives the Pentagon access to its Gemini AI systems on classified networks, sources told NBC News and the Washington Post. Fortune pegs the contract’s value at roughly $200 million. The arrangement was announced Friday alongside similar pacts with six other tech giants—OpenAI, Microsoft, Amazon Web Services, Nvidia, SpaceX and Reflection—under a sweeping "War Department" initiative described by the Pentagon as indispensable to national security. Google kept the specific scope under wraps, citing classification, but employees quickly learned it includes a broad "all lawful use" clause that covers military applications.

Why workers revolted

More than 600 Googlers signed an open letter to CEO Sundar Pichai urging him to "refuse to allow the DoD to use its AI models for classified work." The letter, first reported by the Washington Post and amplified by Semafor and Common Dreams, argues that Google technology will now be used for "coercive or violent purposes" and that human lives are already at risk from AI misuse. The protest echoes the 2018 Project Maven fight, when 4,000 employees petitioned and dozens resigned over a Pentagon drone-imaging contract Google ultimately abandoned. This time, however, leadership appears unmoved.

New demand: stop Israeli military work

Fortune reports that London-based DeepMind staff are also demanding Google cease any collaboration with the Israeli military, broadening their protest beyond the Pentagon deal. That angle had not previously surfaced in any of the coverage, and organizers told Fortune it reflects growing alarm that Gemini models could be deployed in Gaza or the West Bank. The call to end Israeli military work has become a rallying cry inside the UK offices, with employees arguing that dual-use defense contracts are no longer hypothetical—they’re imminent.

DeepMind UK goes union

The backlash just leveled up. Staff at Google DeepMind's UK labs voted to unionize on May 5, citing both the Pentagon deal and potential Israeli military use as the final straw. Organizers told Wired, The Verge and Fortune they want contractual guarantees that their AI research won't be weaponized. The union drive covers roughly 200 researchers, engineers and product managers who've spent the past month in emergency meetings after learning Gemini models they'd helped train could soon guide military targeting systems. One organizer, speaking anonymously, said the vote passed with 84% support and accused Google of treating staff concerns as "a PR problem."

Eroded leverage

Fortune adds a sobering footnote: the power workers once had to kill such contracts has eroded significantly. Internal memos leaked to Fortune show Google’s legal and policy teams quietly rewrote objection-handling procedures after the Maven fallout, making it harder for employee dissent to derail defense deals. That procedural shift helps explain why leadership has stayed silent even as outrage spreads across Slack channels and campus courtyards.

Key Points

Google DeepMind UK staff voted 84% in favor of unionizing after learning Gemini models may be used by both the Pentagon and the Israeli military.

Workers are demanding Google walk back its $200 million classified Pentagon contract and end any collaboration with the Israeli military.

The union covers ~200 researchers, engineers and product managers who want contractual guarantees their work won’t be weaponized.

Fortune reports Google quietly rewrote internal procedures after 2018’s Project Maven fight, reducing employee power to block defense contracts.

Over 600 Googlers have signed an open letter condemning military use of AI, echoing the 2018 protest that forced Google to abandon Project Maven.

Questions Answered

They’re opposing Google’s $200 million classified Pentagon Gemini deal and any collaboration with the Israeli military.

Roughly 200 researchers, engineers and product managers at Google DeepMind’s UK labs.

Yes. In 2018, employee backlash forced Google to drop Project Maven, a drone-imaging contract. This time, internal policies have changed and leadership is unmoved.