Microsoft fires engineer who disrupted Satya Nadella’s keynote over Israel ties

Microsoft has terminated a software engineer who disrupted CEO Satya Nadella’s keynote address at the company’s Build 2025 developer conference. The engineer, Joe Lopez, interrupted the speech in protest of Microsoft’s business relationship with the Israeli military during the ongoing conflict in Gaza.

Protest draws attention to Microsoft’s role in Israel-Gaza conflict

During the keynote at the Seattle Convention Center, Lopez shouted from the audience: “Free Palestine. How about you show them how Microsoft is killing Palestinians? How about you show them how Israeli war crimes are powered by Azure?” Security personnel quickly removed him from the venue. As he was being escorted out, Lopez continued, “As a Microsoft worker, I refuse to be complicit in this genocide.”

According to the advocacy group “No Azure for Apartheid,” Lopez was sent a termination letter following the protest. The group stated that Lopez was reportedly unable to access the letter.

Fired employee emails colleagues

Shortly after the incident, Lopez sent a mass email to Microsoft staff, disputing the company’s statements regarding the use of its Azure cloud technology in Gaza. “Leadership rejects our claims that Azure technology is being used to target or harm civilians in Gaza,” he wrote. “Those of us who have been paying attention know that this is a bold-faced lie. Every byte of data that is stored on the cloud (much of it likely containing data obtained by illegal mass surveillance) can and will be used as justification to level cities and exterminate Palestinians.”

More protests at Build 2025 conference

Lopez’s protest was one of several that occurred during the four-day conference. At least three executive sessions were interrupted, and demonstrators gathered outside the venue. A livestream’s audio was also briefly cut during one of the protests.

In another incident, Vaniya Agrawal, a former Microsoft engineer, and Hossam Nasr, another ex-employee, interrupted a session led by the company’s head of AI security, Neta Haiby. On May 20, a Palestinian tech worker interrupted a keynote by Microsoft executive Jay Parikh, shouting: “Jay! My people are suffering.”

Microsoft responds to concerns, dissent persists

Last week, Microsoft confirmed that it provides AI services to the Israeli military. However, the company stated it had found no evidence that Azure or other AI tools had been used to directly target or harm civilians in Gaza.

Despite the company’s position, internal protests continue. The employee-led group behind the demonstrations claims Microsoft has blocked internal emails containing terms such as “Palestine” and “Gaza.”

Microsoft previously dismissed employees for similar actions, including protests during its 50th anniversary event in April.