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Google Director Resigns After Company Signs Pentagon AI Contract
René Mayrhofer, Android platform security director, resigned after Google signed a classified AI contract with the Department of Defense and dropped its carbon-neutral target.
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René Mayrhofer, a director for Android platform security at Google, resigned after the company signed a deal with the Department of Defense to supply AI technology for classified work. " Business Insider obtained the note, which Mayrhofer later posted on his personal blog.
"Google management has quietly abandoned the goals to become carbon-neutral because of the AI model energy usage," the note stated.
Google announced the Pentagon contract in late April. The agreement covers AI applications that can include planning military operations and intelligence gathering. Mayrhofer cited Google's 2018 AI principles, which pledged that the company would not develop AI for weapons or surveillance tools.
"This deal implies that Google (AI) products will likely be used directly against me and mine," he wrote. U.S. government "has become hostile" to educational institutions.
"I am quite sad that it had to come to this, and desperately hope Google management re-discovers its moral compass," the note concluded. Mayrhofer is not the first Google employee to voice disagreement over the Pentagon contract. Google did not respond to a request for comment.
