Why I Left Google DeepMind

Table of ContentsGoogle supports the immigration enforcement supply chainBut how could I do anything about it?Talking to Jeff DeanThe Pentagon tries to intimidate AnthropicI wanted to mobilize the AI luminaries at the conferenceTalking to Bengio and StuartStuart closes out iaseaiInternational Association of Silence on the Ethics of AITrying to stop Google from signingBuilding internal cost for GoogleJeff Dean, you’re our only hopeJeff signs an amicus brief supporting AnthropicSenior management insisted Google wouldn’t cavePreparing for lunch with Jeff DeanI arranged social supportThe art of the dealMy lunch with JeffSearching for another path to impactNo one is responding, so why not just DM the ceo?My Framework goes unevaluatedGoogle quietly signs the dealDemis insists Google’s AI principles “haven’t changed”We can “work with Western democracies” to “beat China” without giving in to every demand Trump makesBuilding a world-reshaping technology on personal trustReflectionsHow can a pledge-signer remain at gdm?The weight of ethicsWhat are the AI luminaries doing?Why didn’t Jeff put his foot down?Breaking free of rolesWhy I left Google DeepMindSimilar postsAppendix: Anticipated questionsWhat if the people you critique were saving their political capital?Maybe they thought you weren’t worth their time; you aren’t entitled to their helpEvery person shouldn’t have to speak out about every issueEven if Google had adopted your Framework, the Pentagon would have refusedDoes this have any impact on existential risk from AI?Appendix: “Don’t worry, it’s only api access”FootnotesIn January, Department of Homeland Security (dhs) officers killed at least two people. In both cases, a federal agent grasped his gun, aimed it at a peaceful citizen, and shot them dead. I learned that Google sells its Cloud services to the relevant agencies within dhs. I thought that was wrong. Federal agents should not be able to kill citizens in the street. I set out to find the most effective way to push my company to stop serving these agencies. My divestment campaign quickly broadened into an attempt to prevent Google from signing an unethical military AI deal, as the Pentagon started pressuring AI providers into military AI deals with no restrictions against use for killer robots or mass surveillance.1 I wanted AI ethics commitments to hold under pressure.

In particular, I wanted Google DeepMind (gdm) to maintain its existing commitment against supporting killer robots. Over several months, I asked many people to act. I asked senior people—respected people—people with reputations silvered by their concern about AI ethics and safety. Nearly all declined. Take Stuart Russell, a famous AI researcher who spent over a decade crusading against autonomous weapons. I worked at his lab for years. At a conference, on-stage, he agreed to push his organization to make a statement supporting AI providers against government coercion and promised a poll of its members. The statement and poll both vanished. Or take Jeff Dean, who is Google’s Chief Scientist and the co-lead of Google’s Gemini AI project. In 2018, Jeff signed a pledge to never support the development or use of killer robots. I got Jeff to publicly and boldly co-sign an amicus brief (where outsiders weigh in to sway a lawsuit) backing Anthropic against the Pentagon. But I also asked him to use his immense leverage to stop Google from making its own unethical deal with the military, and I don’t think he did. He remains at Google despite his pledge. I wrote a 25-page proposal containing contract language and oversight mechanisms. Military- and surveillance-law experts praised the proposal, which represented a principled counteroffer Google could have stood by. I sent the proposal to Demis Hassabis (gdm’s ceo) who routed it to senior policy staff, only for the proposal to wilt unattended until Google signed a deal. Senior management had insisted that Google wouldn’t sign. I disagreed with them, but they largely ignored my warnings. While I may have increased the Pentagon’s hesitation around the deal, Google still signed a deal handing over their AI without restrictions against killer robots or mass AI spying. Google’s contract restrictions were even weaker than OpenAI’s. At that point, I couldn’t stay at Google in good conscience, so I left. This essay tells the story of why I left Google DeepMind. It is also the story of something larger: how powerful people and institutions failed, one after another, to keep their AI ethics promises in the face of pressure. On private communications Throughout this essay, I never quote anyone’s private words without permission. Where private conversations matter, I characterize them minimally. I otherwise keep to my own actions, public information, and official communications.

You can’t verify my characterizations, so weight them accordingly. This minimization has cut content which would have supported my arguments. Google supports the immigration enforcement supply chain January 26th, 2026 After Alex Pretti’s death, I was determined to take effective action. To determine how to reduce harm from dhs, I researched Big Tech’s entanglement. Certainly, Microsoft and Amazon have larger involvement, but I was surprised to learn of Google’s exposure. Google’s contracts with DHS Alex Pretti, 2024. The dhs 2025 AI Use Case Inventory lists Google among the GenAI providers used to “improve the operational efficiency” of dhs. Google sells Cloud services to ice through third parties like ITC Federal.2 On October 3rd, 2025, Google delisted apps that warned of ice activity. Google voluntarily handed a student protester’s account to ice without notice, breaking their Terms of Service promise to “send an email to the user account before disclosing information [to the government].”3 But how could I do anything about it? The stereotypical activist action is to make a petition. But Google had already ignored a large petition on this issue. Plus, Google’s executives likely hardened their company against stereotypical organizing tactics. Sit-ins, strikes, even a mass of Google engineers quitting: I deemed all of them ineffective (if I could even pull them off). As I strategized, I judged that Google would not care about 100 random research engineers quitting. No, in the AI industry, talent is top-heavy and teams are driven by a few hard-to-replace stars. I didn’t need to coordinate 100 engineers. Perhaps I just needed to coordinate 10. I’d followed the news and guessed that Sundar Pichai (Google’s ceo) was more of a businessman than a “make me a big speech about ethics and I’ll change my mind” kind of guy. But if a few hard-to-replace people were ready to walk, that would matter for the business, so Sundar might listen. That’s when I remembered reading Jeff Dean tweeting about how bad ice was, retweeting Anne Frank quotes. Maybe I didn’t even need 10 engineers, I just needed one.

This is absolutely shameful. Agents of a federal agency unnecessarily escalating, and then executing a defenseless citizen whose offense appears to be using his cell phone camera. Every person regardless of political affiliation should be denouncing this.January 24th, 20262458.4k Jeff Dean retweeted“Terrible things are happening outside. Poor helpless people are being dragged out of their homes. Families are torn apart.Men, women, and children are separated. Children come home from school to find that their parents have disappeared.”Diary of Anne FrankJanuary 13, 1943January 25th, 202654834.8k Jeff is considered a saint at Google. He was Google’s 30th employee, developed key algorithms, and is known as a man of principle. A common joke: it’s easier for Jeff Dean’s resume to list what he hasn’t achieved than what he has. He’s Google’s Chief Scientist and a co-lead of Google’s Gemini effort. A Jeff departure would be a disaster for the company. But if Jeff cared so much and had so much leverage, why was Google in these ice contracts in the first place? Of course, you can’t be Chief Scientist and constantly get what you want by threatening to quit. But I still felt confused. Talking to Jeff Dean February 9th, 2026 At first I thought about who could put me in touch with him. But (and this is a good general lesson) if you want to talk to someone about something, you can always just ask them! I told Jeff that I respected him for speaking out, that I wanted Google to divest from the dhs supply chain. I asked if he shared these goals and, if so, how I could help. He suggested it’d be reasonable for me to email a few guys. Their names: Sundar Pichai (ceo of Google), Demis Hassabis (ceo of Google DeepMind), and Thomas Kurian (ceo of Google Cloud). I thought “sure, Jeff. No problem. I’ll just tell them what I think.” My email I’m writing as a concerned employee at gdm. I recently messaged Jeff Dean regarding my concerns. He suggested that directly emailing the three of you was a reasonable next step.

I have no problem with Google working with lawful administrations of either US political party. My concern is not about politics, but rather about the events enabled by Google’s role in the dhs supply chain.I think that ice has gone well beyond its legal mandate to remove illegal immigrants from the country in an orderly fashion. According to watchdogs, ice operations frequently deprive targets of due process. These operations regularly detain citizens in facilities operating with minimal (or no) legal oversight. Over 1,000 people are missing from one such location. At other locations, the aclu reports human rights abuses and a severe lack of safety for detainees.These are not standard, legitimate enforcement activities. These operations are troubling from a human rights perspective and also pose reputational risk to any vendors involved.On 1/28/26, the dhs posted its 2025 AI Use Case Inventory, which lists Google as one of several GenAI providers which “improve the operational efficiency” of dhs. I urge Google to immediately stop working with ice (and dhs more broadly), including via support for third-party integrators facilitating these specific operations. Whether through a direct (“prime”) contract or through intermediaries (like ITC Federal), Cloud and Gemini must not power these operations.History will judge the tech sector by its involvement in these events. I love working at Google, and I want to ensure Google is on the right side of that history. Alexander Matt Turner Research Scientist They never replied. I returned to Jeff and asked for a lunch to discuss constructive opportunities for real change within Google. I told him: “any time, any place. I’ll drive down to Mountain View to meet with you.” At this point, I thought this was where “plan A” would fail. To my surprise, he actually accepted, for a lunch a few weeks out. A lot would happen in that time. The Pentagon tries to intimidate Anthropic February 25th, 2026 The Pentagon wanted the frontier AI lab Anthropic to remove red lines from its existing contract: red lines against lethal autonomous weapons systems and AI spying / profiling. The ultimatum was essentially “give us your product or we will designate you a supply chain risk.” The government wanted the AI for “all lawful use.” There were two major problems with that kind of deal.