Google Co-Founder Sergey Brin Accuses UN of Anti-Semitism Over Gaza Conflict Allegations
Google co-founder Sergey Brin has criticized the United Nations as “transparently anti-Semitic” in response to a report accusing the tech giant of profiting from Israel’s war in Gaza. The report, by UN special rapporteur Francesca Albanese, claimed that Alphabet, Google’s parent company, provided cloud and AI tools to the Israeli military, describing their actions as “the genocide carried out by Israel.” Brin, who is Jewish, argued that the misuse of the term “genocide” is offensive to Jewish communities and warned against citing anti-Semitic organizations like the UN. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has dismissed the genocide allegations, asserting his country’s actions are in self-defense.
The report, published by Albanese, accused Alphabet of using its cloud computing and AI technologies to support the Israeli Defense Forces during their operations in Gaza. The United States mission to the UN has criticized Albanese for anti-Semitism and bias, prompting Washington to impose sanctions against her. Brin’s spokesman told The Washington Post that the comments were made in response to a “plainly biased and misleading report.”
Albanese has repeatedly labeled Israel’s campaign in Gaza as a “genocide,” a stance that has drawn considerable controversy. The United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’ office confirmed that rapporteurs operate independently and are appointed by the Human Rights Council. In addition to the accusations against Alphabet, reports indicate that Google expanded its AI support to the Israeli military following Hamas’s October 2023 attack. The company and Amazon had secured a $1.2 billion cloud contract with the Israeli government under Project Nimbus.
Google has faced mounting criticism over its role in the conflict. In February 2024, it removed a pledge from its AI guidelines not to develop tools for weapons or surveillance. The accusations of political bias have also extended to Russian officials, who have accused the company of restricting access to its services for state media. Since the Ukraine war began in February 2022, Google has restricted monetization tools for Russia-linked entities and suspended payments to app developers with Russian bank accounts.