Overview

• Microsoft employees discovered internal email filters blocking terms such as 'Palestine,' 'Gaza,' and 'genocide,' sparking accusations of censorship and silencing dissent.
• The company confirmed implementing these filters to limit mass, politically focused emails, defending the move as moderation of non-work communications.
• Protests organized by No Azure for Apartheid disrupted multiple sessions at the Build 2025 conference, including CEO Satya Nadella’s keynote and other executive presentations.
• Microsoft acknowledged providing AI services to the Israeli military but stated that internal and external reviews found no evidence of its technology being used to harm civilians in Gaza.
• Critics, including employees and activists, have called for greater transparency and accountability regarding Microsoft’s contracts with the Israeli government.