Microsoft Engineer Disrupts Build 2025 Keynote Over Israel Contracts

On May 19, 2025, Microsoft engineer Joe Lopez disrupted CEO Satya Nadella’s keynote at the Build developer conference in Seattle. Lopez shouted “Free Palestine” and called out Microsoft’s contracts with the Israeli government, accusing the company of enabling human rights abuses in Gaza.

Security quickly removed Lopez, but he wasn’t acting alone. He stood beside a former Google employee who had been fired for similar activism. Soon after the protest, Lopez emailed thousands of Microsoft staff, criticizing leadership for staying silent. He accused executives of brushing off legitimate concerns and relying on internal reviews that he believes ignore evidence.

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Microsoft has claimed its Azure and OpenAI services aren’t being misused by Israel’s Ministry of Defense. Lopez disagrees, citing reports from 972 Magazine and Amnesty International that describe military surveillance and targeting tools allegedly built using Microsoft and OpenAI tech.

This marks the second protest targeting Nadella this year. At Microsoft’s 50th anniversary celebration, activists also interrupted the stage, with one employee calling Mustafa Suleyman, CEO of AI at Microsoft, a “war profiteer.”