Microsoft workers accuse company of trying to get customers "addicted" to AI while forcing it on their own staff and making them party to "human rights violations"
A group of "concerned Microsoft workers" have published an open letter criticising their employer's "speed-at-all-costs" approach to generative AI, which they argue is "harming our customers, colleagues, shareholders, vendors, and the planet". They accuse Microsoft leadership of trying to get people "addicted" to genAI, while making their own staff miserable by mandating AI usage. Echoing the…
A coalition of Microsoft employees has penned an open letter, decrying the tech giant's aggressive pursuit of generative AI technology. The letter alleges that Microsoft's haste is causing harm to customers, co-workers, shareholders, partners, and the environment. The writers claim that company leaders are attempting to cultivate an addiction to generative AI among consumers, all while imposing the technology on their own workforce and subjecting them to unpleasant working conditions.
The letter echoes ongoing boycotts against Microsoft's Xbox division, citing parallels with the BDS movement. The authors argue that Microsoft is complicit in human rights violations by supplying generative AI to Israel's military during its assault on Gaza, which a UN commission has labeled a genocide. Additionally, the workers criticize Microsoft's contracts with the United States' stringent Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency.
While the employees do not outright oppose generative AI, they are organizing to challenge the industry's trajectory, which they believe will continue to concentrate wealth in the hands of a select few AI conglomerates. The letter highlights that AI companies now hold a significant portion of the global stock market, a fact the authors find troubling.
Written by urgent.news from Rock Paper Shotgun's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
