Open Letter to Bill Gates
The following letter was sent to Bill Gates on 14 May 2025 and signed by 121 Gates Cambridge Scholars and Alumni. We have yet to receive a response.
Re: Abuse of Microsoft Technology in Gaza by the Government of Israel
Dear Bill Gates,
We write to you in our capacity as Gates Cambridge Scholars and Alumni to request your urgent attention and action regarding Microsoft’s supply of technology to the Israeli military and the campaign of Microsoft employees who reject their labour being used to surveil, control, maim, and kill Palestinians.
As you know, Israel is currently on trial for genocide at the International Court of Justice and is also in violation of the ICJ’s 2024 advisory opinion mandating it to immediately end its occupation of Palestinian Territory. Additionally, the International Criminal Court has issued an arrest warrant for the Prime Minister of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu, for war crimes and crimes against humanity. These judicial proceedings come during what UN experts and international human rights organisations (such as Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and Forensic Architecture) have already documented is a genocide in Gaza.
UNICEF reports that 15,000 Palestinian children have been killed, 34,000 injured, and nearly one million children repeatedly displaced and currently facing starvation due to the deprivation of aid. Life expectancy in Gaza has plummeted by almost 34 years. Since October 2023, we have witnessed repeated war crimes committed against the Palestinian people as Israel conducts this military campaign with no regard for proportionality, distinction, and precaution. There are too many of such incidents to list in this letter; the massacre of 15 rescue workers that was subsequently covered up by the Israeli military is but one example.
The impunity of the Israeli government is only made possible by states and international corporations continuing to supply its military, in which tech companies are playing an increasing role. Earlier this year, it was reported that the Israeli military relied on cloud and AI tools from Microsoft during its war in Gaza and its illegal occupation of Palestinian Territory. Another extensive investigation traced the use of OpenAI through the Azure platform by the Israeli military in Gaza and Lebanon. It found that the Israeli military has massively increased its use of this technology to identify targets and assess “collateral damage”. We quote directly from these revelations to illustrate how Azure expedites the indiscriminate killing of civilians while Microsoft profits:
“The Israeli military uses Microsoft Azure to compile information gathered through mass surveillance, which it transcribes and translates, including phone calls, texts and audio messages, according to an Israeli intelligence officer who works with the systems…OpenAI has acknowledged that its popular AI-powered translation model Whisper, which can transcribe and translate into multiple languages including Arabic, can make up text that no one said, including adding racial commentary and violent rhetoric…Microsoft’s consulting services unit also works closely with Israel’s military, which represented half of that section’s overall revenue, an internal document said.”
Microsoft employees have launched the No Azure for Apartheid campaign, to demand the company cease all Azure contracts and partnerships with the Israeli military; disclose all ties to the Israeli military; call for a ceasefire; and protect employees who express views supportive of the Palestinian people. This campaign follows earlier employee concerns regarding Azure’s use in racialized policing and surveillance in the United States.
In early April, during events celebrating the 50th anniversary of Microsoft—at which you were present—two Microsoft employees, Ibtihal Aboussad and Vaniya Agrawal, protested Microsoft’s relationship with the Israeli military. They were subsequently fired. This follows the firing of two employees who organized a lunchtime vigil to raise money for humanitarian assistance in Gaza and to draw attention to Microsoft’s role in supplying the Israeli military. These workers represent a broader group of employees who are questioning if Microsoft even cares about human rights and its obligation to adhere to the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.
While we understand you are no longer formally leading Microsoft, undoubtedly, you are an authoritative voice, not only on the future direction of the company, but also through your philanthropic work in the development field. We are dismayed that you would knowingly support Microsoft’s continued supply of technology to a military currently engaged in genocide and the exploitation of technology for profit and war.
The Gates Cambridge scholarship was established to build a global network of future leaders “committed to improving the lives of others”. We joined the community of scholars under the assumption that the Gates Cambridge Trust, the Gates Foundation and you, yourself, also embody and embrace this value. We ask you to take moral leadership in this decisive political moment and issue a public statement expressing your rejection of Microsoft technologies being used as a tool of war and genocide and your endorsement of the demands of the No Azure for Apartheid campaign. Failing to take a stand on this issue has far-reaching damaging consequences for upholding international law, democratic values, and human rights that underpin the international system as we know it. It also risks the reputation of the scholarship and tarnishes the legacy of those who championed its work since its inception.
The Palestinian people have suffered oppression, occupation, apartheid and, now, genocide. As scholars from all over the world who have a shared commitment to social justice, it is our responsibility to use our voices, in whichever way we can, to stop these crimes and work towards Palestinian freedom. We also believe that individuals with extensive influence, such as yourself, have an additional responsibility to use your voice and platform to speak truth, and to act in accordance with the stated aims of your philanthropic work—“to create a world where every person has the opportunity to live a healthy, productive life”.
We look forward to your response. Should you be open to discussing this further, we would be happy to arrange a discussion with Gates Cambridge Scholars and Alumni who have been working on this issue.
Sincerely,
(signatories follow in alphabetical order by first name; signatories who requested to remove identifying information follow.)
UPDATE: Upon sending the initial 121 signatories and letter to Bill Gates, we have gained larger traction within the Gates Cambridge community and therefore have re-opened our petition in alignment with a strong demand to continue adding signatories to the list below. The list is updated periodically to account for new signatories from the vibrant Gates community— past, present, and future. We thank every one of our Gates Scholars for their solidarity and steadfast support in this matter.
Ale Uriostegui, Politics and International Studies, 2024
Alejandra Vijil, Education, 2024
Alina Utrata, Politics and International Studies, 2020
Aliya Bagewadi, Land Economy, 2015
Aliya Khalid, Education, 2015
Aneisa Babkir, Politics and International Studies, 2024
Ankit Singh, History, 2024
Anna Kendrick, Spanish and Portuguese, 2011
Antonia Netzl, Zoology, 2022
Apolline Gouzi, Music, 2023
Arman Kassam, Sociology, 2024
Arushi Vats, History of Art, 2023
Asiya Islam, Sociology, 2015
Ata Elbizanti, Physiology, Development, and Neuroscience, 2024
Brittney Johnson, Education, 2024
Bronte Jones, History and Philosophy of Science, 2024
Caitlin Casey, Astronomy, 2007
Camille Cole, History, 2012
Carla Rainer, Politics and International Studies, 2024
Catthi Ly, History and Philosophy of Science, 2022
Chara Triantafyllidou, Modern and Medieval Languages and Linguistics, 2021
Collin VanBuren, Earth Sciences, 2013
Dena Qaddumi, Architecture, 2016
Dina Tahboub, Pharmacology, 2015
Draško Kašćelan, Modern and Medieval Languages and Linguistics, 2015
Elizabeth Appel, Engineering, 2024
Emma Gattey, History, 2020
Fahad Rahman, Social Anthropology, 2015
Gwendolyn Li Pyeatt, Biochemistry, 2021
Hanna Baumann, Architecture, 2012
Hanna Danbolt Ajer, Theoretical and Applied Linguistics, 2014
Holden Lee, Mathematics, 2013
Ila Ananya, Social Anthropology, 2022
Ilaria Michelis, Sociology, 2019
Ivan Rajic, Development Studies, 2009
Jen Nilsen, Sociology, 2024
Jessica Van Meir, Development Studies, 2017
Jocelyn Perry, Politics and International Studies, 2015
Jose Ciro Martinez, Politics and International Studies, 2014
Juliana Broad, History and Philosophy of Science, 2018
Justin G. Park, Anglo-Saxon, Norse and Celtic, 2013
Karly Drabot, Psychology, 2016
Kathy Michelle Chacón, Modern and Medieval Languages and Linguistics, 2024
Madalyn Grant, Archaeology, 2024
Maheetha, Genomic Medicine, 2016
Margaret Comer, Archaeology, 2015
Maria Hengeveld, Politics and International Studies, 2017
Marina Velickovic, Law, 2017
Matthew Blacker, Applied Maths and Theoretical Physics, 2022
Merve Fejzula, History, 2015
Neha Rahman, Classics, 2020
Nick Posegay, Asian and Middle Eastern Studies, 2017
Oliver Antczak, Archaeology, 2019
Paulo Savaget, Engineering, 2015
Peter Asimov, 2016
Quinton Gardiner, Classics, 2023
Raphael Lefevre, Politics and International Studies, 2012
Rian Lawrence, Public Health and Primary Care, 2017
Rishabh Bajoria, Law, 2021
Sagnik Dutta, Politics and International Studies, 2016
Samira Patel, Geography, 2022
Simone Haysom, Geography, 2009
Solange Manche, Modern and Medieval Languages and Linguistics, 2018
Sonia Fereidooni, Digital Humanities, 2024
Stuti Pachisia, English, 2020
Tariq Desai, Genetics, 2014
Theo Di Castri, History and Philosophy of Science, 2019
Tomas da cunha Tancredi, Social Anthropology, 2024
Usama Javed Mirza, Education, 2022
Vaibhav Bhardwaj, Plant Sciences, 2012
Vicka Heidt, Politics and International Studies, 2024
Willow Dalehite, 2023
Yassir Fathullah, Engineering, 2021
Zenobia Ismail, Politics and International Studies, 2013
Zoe Stewart, Clinical Biochemistry, 2014
Archaeology, 2023
Education, 2024
Education, 2024
Engineering, 2016
Engineering, 2024
Engineering, 2024
Film and Screen Studies, 2018
Geography, 2018
History, 2016
Modern and Medieval Languages and Linguistics, 2024
Politics and International Studies, 2017
Politics and International Studies, 2012
Politics and International Studies, 2019
Veterinary Medicine 2016
Archaeology
Biological Anthropology
Chemistry
Classics
Classics
Engineering
History and Philosophy of Science
Land Economy
Law
Medicine
MRC Epidemiology Unit
Pathology
Pharmacology
Politics and International Studies
Social Anthropology
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