September 27 2024, 11:30 a.m. (TheIntercept.com)<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Luma page, left, for the Google-sponsored Israeli defense tech event. The same event page, right, after The Intercept contacted the organizers. Screenshot<\/p>\n\n\n\n THE ISRAELI DEFENSE<\/strong> Tech Conference, aimed at tech companies working with the Israeli military, was scheduled for November at the Google for Startups campus in Tel Aviv.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The event, according to a listing posted on the event management app Luma, was pitched at \u201cfounders, investors and innovators\u201d looking to network and learn more about the defense tech space. It was co-sponsored by Google; Fusion Venture Capital; Genesis, a startup accelerator; and the Israeli military\u2019s research and development arm, known as the Directorate of Defense Research and Development (DDR&D, or Ma\u2019fat). <\/p>\n\n\n\n When The Intercept contacted Google, the event page disappeared.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n Google was not only listed as the physical host of the event and one of its sponsors, but the event listing also included a notice that attendees \u201capprove of sharing [their] details with the organizers (Fusion & Google)\u201d as part of signing up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When The Intercept contacted Google and the other companies and venture capital firms on the event page, the event page disappeared. Google spokesperson Andr\u00e9a Willis told The Intercept in an email, \u201cGoogle is not associated with this event.\u201d Willis did not respond when asked how this could be possible if Google is hosting and co-sponsoring the event, or why the event page went down. None of the other companies or venture capital firms on the event page responded to requests for comment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Meet the First Tenured Professor to Be Fired for Pro-Palestine Speech<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n Natasha Lennard<\/a><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n Encrypted Apps Can Protect Your Privacy \u2014 Unless You Use Them Like Eric Adams<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n Nikita Mazurov<\/a><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n Google Was Set to Host an Israeli Military Conference. When We Asked About It, the Event Disappeared.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n Caroline Haskins<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n After months<\/a> of sustained<\/a> protests against Google\u2019s relationship<\/a> with Israel, the company appears to be trying to muddy that relationship, at least in the public eye, while continuing<\/a> its collaboration<\/a> with the Israeli military.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In July, Google\u2019s\u00a0name was mysteriously removed<\/a>\u00a0from the website of a separate conference, IT for IDF, meant to highlight tech companies working with the Israel Defense Forces, which identified it as a co-sponsor. Conference organizers claimed Google\u2019s inclusion was a mistake, but internal documents from Google name the company as an event co-sponsor.\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n According to the event listing, November\u2019s Israeli Defense Tech Conference would take place at the Tel Aviv campus of Google for Startups, which offers resources for companies that work or partner with Google. Its lead speaker is listed as Nir Weingold, head of planning, economics, and IT for DDR&D, who was scheduled to talk about \u201ctrends in Israeli defense tech.\u201d Weingold was followed by a panel of venture capitalists talking about investing in Israeli military startups.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The event page also had a panel with executives of companies \u201cleading Israeli defense tech.\u201d One of these companies was SpearUAV, a company whose surveillance and explosive drones are used by the Israeli military<\/a>. Another was Spectralx (formerly Polaris), a company that makes sensors, drones, and other military-grade technology. According to its website<\/a>, it\u2019s being used by<\/a> the DDR&D and leading Israeli weapon manufacturer Elbit Systems, as well as the U.S. Navy and U.S. Special Operations Command. The third company, AIR, makes consumer-grade, single-passenger electric planes. To date, the company has not publicly disclosed a relationship with the Israeli military.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The conference, if it takes place, would also feature several venture capital firms that are funding companies that are publicly working with the U.S. military, but have not yet disclosed any contracts with Israeli forces. One of these firms is Tal Ventures, which funds Magnus Metal, winner of a<\/a> U.S. Defense Department competition. Tal Ventures also funds Scribe, which got a contract<\/a> with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Another company that was scheduled to be at the conference is Intel Capital, the investment wing of the major chip manufacturer. The firm funds Syntiant Corp., which recently secured a contract<\/a> with the U.S. Defense Innovation Unit for its targeting systems for unmanned vehicles. The firm has also published two pieces<\/a> on its company blog<\/a> about the importance of working with military and defense agencies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Venture capital firm 10D was also scheduled to be at the conference. It funds Exodigo, an underground mapping company that has not disclosed any military contracts, but has spoken publicly<\/a> about the importance of working with Israel\u2019s military. Similarly, venture capital firm TLV Partners was scheduled to be at the conference and has written on its company blog<\/a> about the importance of private sector collaboration with the Israeli military.<\/p>\n\n\n\n FOR THE PAST year, Google-sponsored conferences have been the target of people protesting Project Nimbus, the $1.2 billion contract it shares with Amazon that involves providing cloud services and other tools to the Israeli government. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Shortly after news about Project Nimbus became public in 2021, hundreds of Google and Amazon workers signed and published an open letter<\/a> condemning it, and the activist group No Tech for Apartheid formed. The group, made up of tech workers and organizers with MPower Change and Jewish Voice for Peace, has been protesting Project Nimbus since 2022<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For years, Google has insisted<\/a> that Project Nimbus is \u201cnot directed at highly sensitive, classified, or military workloads relevant to weapons or intelligence services.\u201d However, reporting<\/a> has since revealed<\/a> an extensive relationship<\/a> between Project Nimbus and the IDF, accompanied by public paper trails.Read Our Complete CoverageIsrael\u2019s War on Gaza<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n In March, Google Cloud engineer Eddie Hatfield protested Project Nimbus by interrupting the Google Israel<\/a> managing director at Mind the Tech, an Israeli tech industry conference in New York that is co-sponsored by Google. Hatfield was fired<\/a> days later. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Weeks later, Google employees staged sit-ins protesting<\/a> Project Nimbus at company offices in Sunnyvale, California, and New York, with simultaneous protests taking place outside. Nine people occupying company office space were arrested<\/a>, and fifty people<\/a> were fired<\/a> shortly after. They later filed a complaint<\/a> with the National Labor Relations Board about the incident. Share<\/p>\n\n\n\n Caroline Haskins<\/a>emailcarolinehaskins@gmail.com<\/a>@car0linehaskins<\/a>on X<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The military tech conference, set for November at one of Google\u2019s Tel Aviv offices, was scrubbed from the internet when The Intercept asked questions. Caroline Haskins September 27 2024, 11:30 a.m. (TheIntercept.com) The Luma page, left, for the Google-sponsored Israeli defense tech event. The same event page, right, after The… Continue reading ![\"A](\"https:\/\/theintercept.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/google-israeli-defense-screenshots-e1727449898450.jpg?fit=1980%2C1100\")
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