TECH

Google pledge against using AI for weapons vanishes

Google on Tuesday updated its principles when it comes to artificial intelligence, removing vows not to use the technology for weapons or surveillance.

Revised AI principles were posted just weeks after Google chief executive Sundar Pichai and other tech titans attended the inauguration of US President Donald Trump. When asked by AFP about the change, a Google spokesperson referred to a blog post outlining the company's AI principles that made no mention of the promises, which Pichai first outlined in 2018.

"We believe democracies should lead in AI development, guided by core values like freedom, equality, and respect for human rights," read an updated AI principles blog post by Google DeepMind chief Demis Hassabis and research labs senior vice president James Manyika.

"And we believe that companies, governments, and organizations sharing these values should work together to create AI that protects people, promotes global growth, and supports national security," it continued.

Pichai had previously stated that the company would not design or deploy the technology for weapons designed to hurt people or "that gather or use information for surveillance violating internationally accepted norms."

That wording was gone from the updated AI principles shared by Google on Tuesday. Upon taking office, Trump quickly rescinded an executive order by his predecessor, former president Joe Biden, mandating safety practices for AI.

Companies in the race to lead the burgeoning AI field in the United States now have fewer obligations to adhere to, such as being required to share test results signaling the technology has serious risks to the nation, its economy or its citizens. Google noted in its blog post that it publishes an annual report about its AI work and progress.

"There's a global competition taking place for AI leadership within an increasingly complex geopolitical landscape," Hassabis and Manyika said in their post. "Billions of people are using AI in their everyday lives."

Google's original AI principles were published after employee backlash to its involvement in a Pentagon research project looking into using AI to improve the ability of weapons systems to identify targets. Google ended its involvement in the project. 

Google shares slide on spending plans despite sales jump...Google's parent company Alphabet on Tuesday reported revenue jumped in the recently-ended quarter, but shares sank on concerns it may be pouring too much money into artificial intelligence.

Google and rivals are spending billions of dollars on data centers and more for AI, while meaningful returns on investments remain elusive and the rise of lower-cost model DeepSeek from China raises questions about how much needs to be spent.

"We are pushing the next frontiers from AI agents, reasoning and deep research to state-of-the-art video, quantum computing and more," Alphabet chief executive Sundar Pichai said during an earnings call.

"The company is in a great rhythm and cadence, building, testing, and launching products faster than ever before."

Pichai said this is translating into increased use of its products, including AI search summaries that are now available in more than 100 countries.

Alphabet said revenues jumped 12 percent to $96.5 billion in the quarter, but the company's share price sank more than 7 percent in after-hours trading as investors were disappointed by lower-than-expected revenue growth and the company's ambitious capital spending forecast for 2025.

Google Cloud revenue, while growing 30 percent to $12 billion, fell short of expectations, raising questions about the division's ability to compete with rivals in the heated AI infrastructure market.

"Q4 was a strong quarter driven by our leadership in AI and momentum across the business," Pichai said. "We'll continue to invest in our cloud business to ensure we can address the increase in customer demand."

Pichai added that Google is working on "even better thinking models" that it will share with developers soon. Alphabet announced plans to invest approximately $75 billion in capital expenditures in 2025, a figure that surprised analysts and highlighted the mounting costs of AI development.

'Chaotic backdrop'...Like other tech giants, Alphabet is betting heavily on artificial intelligence across all of its products. "Part of the reason we are so excited about the AI opportunity is we know we can drive extraordinary use cases because the cost of actually using it is going to keep coming down," Pichai said.

"The opportunity space is as big as it comes, and that's why you're seeing us meeting that moment."

In December, the company announced the launch of Gemini 2.0, its most advanced AI model to date. The company's core Google Services segment, which includes search and YouTube, posted revenues of $84.1 billion, up 10 percent year-over-year.

Hanging over Google in 2025 are two major antitrust cases in the United States concerning the company's dominant position in search engines and ad technology.

A US judge has already found Google operating an illegal monopoly in search, and the company faces potential forced restructuring, including the possible sale of Chrome, its world-leading web browser.

Meanwhile, Britain's competition watchdog recently launched its own investigation into Google's search engine market dominance and its impact on consumers and businesses.

The decision in the US ad tech case is expected in the coming weeks.

"Between defending itself against antitrust lawsuits from multiple governments, courting US TikTok advertisers to capitalize on a yet-elusive ban, reconfiguring search around generative AI, and convincing the market to invest in Gemini, Google is fighting ongoing battles on several fronts," said Emarketer senior analyst Evelyn Mitchell-Wolf.

"Against this chaotic backdrop, Google's core ads business has maintained healthy growth."

© 2025 AFP