Moroccan Engineer Confronts Microsoft AI CEO Over Israel Ties at Company Event

During the presentation by Mustafa Suleyman, CEO of Microsoft AI, of Copilot products, Microsoft’s artificial intelligence assistant, on the sidelines of the company’s 50th anniversary celebration on Friday, April 4, 2025, the Moroccan engineer, Ibtihal Aboussad, made an impression. "Shame on you Mustafa!", she exclaimed as she approached the stage. "You claim to care about using AI for the common good, but Microsoft sells its AI technologies to the Israeli military. In doing so, you contribute to genocide. Fifty thousand people have died in Gaza. How dare you celebrate this anniversary when Microsoft is killing children?"

Last February, an investigation by the Associated Press news agency revealed that Microsoft and OpenAI’s artificial intelligence technologies were being used in Israeli military programs to select bombing targets in Gaza and Lebanon. According to the investigation, an erroneous Israeli air strike in 2023 had killed three young girls and their grandmother in Lebanon. Last January, another investigation by the Israeli newspaper +972 Magazine revealed Microsoft’s significant military involvement in the war in Gaza. Leaked documents from the Ministry of Defense showed that the company had "a footprint in all the major military infrastructures" in Israel.

Suleyman did not appreciate the Moroccan engineer’s criticism. She was expelled from the room. As she left, Aboussad threw a keffiyeh - a symbol of Palestinian solidarity - onto the stage. Suleyman and "all of Microsoft" have "blood on their hands," she added. The CEO of Microsoft AI tried to respond to the Moroccan engineer: "Thank you for your protest, I hear you."

Vaniya Agrawal, another Microsoft employee, then interrupted another activity as part of the celebration featuring Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, current CEO Satya Nadella and former CEO Steve Ballmer - their first public appearance together since 2014. Internal dissent is thus mounting at Microsoft. In February, five employees were expelled from a meeting with CEO Nadella for protesting these same military contracts.

On Friday, Aboussad and Agrawal both lost access to their professional accounts. According to AP, this would be their dismissal. In the wake of this, Microsoft issued a statement. "We offer many opportunities for everyone to express themselves... It is important that this be done in a way that does not disrupt business. If this were to happen, we would ask the participants to move. We are committed to ensuring that our business practices meet the highest standards."