DeepMind UK staff move to unionise amid anger over defence deals and Israel links

In February, Google abandoned a 2018 pledge not to develop AI technologies likely to cause harm

Hundreds of employees at Google DeepMind's London headquarters are seeking to unionise, as mounting concerns over the company's defence contracts and ties to the Israeli government push workers to take collective action against corporate leadership.

Roughly 300 staff members at the Deepmind's London office have recently approached the Communication Workers Union (CWU) to formally organise, three people familiar with the move told the Financial Times.

The effort, if successful, would add fresh strain to DeepMind at a time when its parent company, Google, is aggressively steering it toward commercially viable, and increasingly militarised, applications of AI.

The union drive follows a wave of discontent triggered by Google's February decision to quietly abandon a 2018 pledge not to develop AI technologies likely to cause harm, including weapons and surveillance tools.

The change was detailed in a blog post titled "Responsible AI: Our 2024 report and ongoing work," co-authored by James Manyika, SVP, Google-Alphabet and Demis Hassabis, CEO and co-founder of Google DeepMind.

They explained the company's new position by pointing to "a global competition taking place for AI leadership within an increasingly complex geopolitical landscape."

"We believe democracies should lead in AI development, guided by core values like freedom, equality, and respect for human rights," Manyika and Hassabis wrote.

They further argued that collaboration between companies, governments, and organisations sharing these values is necessary "to create AI that protects people, promotes global growth, and supports national security."

One engineer involved in the union effort told the FT, "This is cutting-edge AI that we're providing to an ongoing conflict."

"People don't want their work used like this. People feel duped."

Fuelling the unrest are media reports that Google's cloud services and AI technologies have been sold to Israel's Ministry of Defence under Project Nimbus, a $1.2 billion agreement between Israel and tech giants Google and Amazon.

Further concerns have been raised by allegations that the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) are using AI systems to identify targets for airstrikes in Gaza, although it remains unclear whether the IDF is employing commercially available software or its own in-house systems.

The controversy has already led to departures. According to internal correspondence reviewed by the Financial Times, at least five DeepMind employees have resigned over the past two months, citing the company's involvement in Project Nimbus and the abandonment of earlier ethical commitments.

In May 2024, DeepMind staff sent a letter to leadership urging the company to withdraw from military contracts altogether. Although meetings with management were held, employees' demands were ultimately rebuffed.

If the union is formally recognised following a staff vote, organisers plan to pressure DeepMind's management to reverse its course on defence deals – and, if necessary, escalate to strike action.

Conversations around similar efforts are reportedly ongoing among DeepMind's counterparts in the United States.

The push for unionisation comes at a time when union activity in the tech sector, traditionally resistant to labour organising, is slowly gaining traction.

Notably, Google workers founded the Alphabet Workers Union in the US in 2021, while Amazon and Apple employees have also made recent organising advances.

Google, for its part, has defended its current approach.

"Our approach is and has always been to develop and deploy AI responsibly," a spokesperson said.

"We encourage constructive and open dialogue with all of our employees. In the UK and around the world, Googlers have long been part of employee representative groups, works councils and unions."

The company added that while it maintains its principles for responsible AI development, the landscape has evolved significantly since the original 2018 commitments.