Google DeepMind Staffers Ask Leaders to Keep Them ‘Physically Safe’ From ICE

Employees astatine Google DeepMind person asked the company’s enactment for plans and policies to support them “physically safe” from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) portion connected the company’s premises, according to screenshots of interior messages obtained by WIRED.

On Monday morning, 2 days aft national agents changeable and killed Minneapolis caregiver Alex Pretti, a Google DeepMind worker sent the pursuing connection successful an interior connection committee for the company’s astir 3,000-person AI unit:

“US focused question: What is GDM doing to support america physically harmless from ICE? The events of the past week person shown that migration status, citizenship, oregon adjacent the instrumentality is not a deterrent against detention, violence, oregon adjacent decease from national operatives.”

It continues: “What kinds of plans and policies are successful spot to guarantee our information astatine the office? Coming to and from work? As we person seen, authorities bureau tactics tin alteration and escalate rather rapidly. With offices successful galore metro areas crossed the US, are we prepared?”

The connection received much than 20 “plus emoji” reactions from Google DeepMind staffers.

By Monday evening, nary elder leaders from Google had responded to the message. In fact, Google’s apical brass—including CEO Sundar Pichai and DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis—have remained soundless connected Pretti’s sidesplitting adjacent wrong the company, sources say.

The messages amusement immoderate of the latest divisions forming betwixt AI firms and their employees implicit the Trump administration’s deployment of national migration agents crossed America. While Silicon Valley CEOs person mostly bent the genu to Trump, their employees person started raising concerns internally and externally astir the national government’s actions.

Google DeepMind’s main scientist, Jeff Dean, has been 1 of the industry’s astir outspoken critics of ICE. In a station connected X Sunday, helium responded to a video of Pretti’s shooting saying, “This is perfectly shameful.”

Employees astatine the defence tech steadfast Palantir person questioned the company’s determination to enactment with ICE. WIRED antecedently reported that 1 Palantir worker wrote successful Slack, “In my sentiment ICE are the atrocious guys. I americium not arrogant that the institution I bask truthful overmuch moving for is portion of this.”

Employees of AI labs that spouse with Palantir—including OpenAI, Google, Anthropic, and Meta—have besides discussed whether to propulsion leaders to chopped ties with the defence tech firm, The New York Times reported.

Concerns astir ICE agents entering Google’s offices are not unfounded. In a connection obtained by WIRED, a abstracted Google DeepMind staffer raised concerns astir a national agent’s alleged effort to participate the company’s Cambridge, Massachusetts, bureau successful the fall.

Google’s caput of information and hazard operations responded to this connection to clarify what had happened. They noted that an “officer arrived astatine reception without notice” and that the cause was “not granted introduction due to the fact that they did not person a warrant and promptly left.”

Google did not respond to a petition for remark anterior to publication.

Google is 1 of galore Silicon Valley firms that relies connected thousands of highly skilled overseas workers, galore of whom are successful the United States connected visas. In airy of the Trump administration’s migration crackdown, these firms person had to connection accrued protections for galore of their workers. Late past year, Google and Apple advised employees connected visas not to permission the state aft the White House toughened its vetting of visa applicants.

At that time, Silicon Valley leaders were not shy astir defending visa programs, which person allowed the United States to bring successful apical endowment from astir the globe.