Music legend Brian Eno has penned an open letter to Microsoft, calling on the tech giant to disinvest from Israel and donating his original $35,000 fee for the Windows 95 start-up chime to Palestinian aid. Eno’s remarks come after Microsoft admitted to selling AI and cloud computing services to the Israeli Defence Force, which have been used in the ongoing war in Gaza.
The conflict has resulted in the deaths of over 63,000 Palestinians since October 2023. Eno expresses shock that the same company he initially saw as representing a promising technological future would be involved in the machinery of oppression and war. He argues that selling advanced AI and cloud services to a government engaged in systematic ethnic cleansing is not acceptable business practices.
Eno calls on Microsoft to suspend all services supporting operations that violate international law, citing their absolute ethical responsibility due to their significant influence over governments. The music legend also invites artists, technologists, and people of conscience to join him in this call for change.
In a symbolic gesture, Eno has donated his original Windows 95 fee to Gazan aid efforts, highlighting the moral implications of such actions.
Source: https://www.musicradar.com/artists/millions-possibly-billions-of-people-have-since-heard-that-start-up-chime-i-never-would-have-believed-that-the-same-company-could-one-day-be-implicated-in-the-machinery-of-oppression-and-war-brian-eno-donates-windows-95-fee-to-palestinian-aid