Amazon, Microsoft execs call for closer alliance between Pentagon and big tech

  • At an annual forum, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and Microsoft President Brad Smith pledged to support the Pentagon even in the face of internal revolt
  • Their comments drew a stark contrast to the approach taken by Google, which has sworn off development of artificial intelligence-based weapons

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella (L) and Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos chat during an American Technology Council roundtable at the White House in Washington, DC, on June 19, 2017. Photo: AFP

Executives from Amazon and Microsoft criticised their Silicon Valley peers for allegedly failing to supply the most advanced technology to the military, arguing closer collaboration is needed to sustain US dominance over autocratic foreign governments.

In comments last weekend at the Reagan National Defense Forum, an annual summit attended by top defence officials and their industry counterparts, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and Microsoft President Brad Smith pledged to support the Pentagon even in the face of internal revolt.

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