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Alphabet shareholders are set to vote on Friday on a resolution that calls for greater transparency over the risks posed by government use of Google\u2019s cloud and AI technology. The vote has gained momentum after Norges Bank Investment Management (NBIM), the world\u2019s largest sovereign wealth fund, announced it will back the proposal against Alphabet management\u2019s wishes.<\/p>\n
The resolution, known as Proposal 11, is being backed by a coalition of more than 40 investors led by Zevin Asset Management. The firms collectively manage $1.15 trillion in assets and hold around $2.2 billion in Alphabet shares directly, investors say. This is equivalent to less than 1% of the company\u2019s shares outstanding, given Alphabet\u2019s roughly $4.4 trillion market value. In an earlier letter to Alphabet, the group requested a meeting with management after the company came out against a shareholder resolution calling for a report on how it oversees related risks.<\/p>\n
It is unlikely the motion will pass through the Friday vote, investors say, but they say they are hoping pressure on the company will result in a meaningful review of its practices.<\/p>\n
Investors have been pressing for clearer reporting on the risks arising from what they say are potential gaps in Google-parent Alphabet\u2019s policies and oversight of customer data processed through Google Services and Google Cloud. <\/p>\n
The investors are seeking a report to evaluate how governance gaps could lead to Google\u2019s products facilitating \u201csurveillance, censorship, profiling, and targeting in contexts of governmental overreach\u201d and recommend risk-mitigation measures. The proposal cites Project Nimbus, the company\u2019s $1.2 billion cloud computing contract with the Israeli government, as an example of a contract that \u201cmay not align with [Alphabet\u2019s] data governance principles.\u201d<\/p>\n
The pressure is part of a recent wave of scrutiny around AI governance across the tech sector. In the last few months, a series of deals struck with the U.S. Pentagon by major AI labs and tech firms, including OpenAI and Google, have sparked concerns over the use of such technology for autonomous weapons and mass surveillance. In London, some staff at Google DeepMind have launched a union effort following the company\u2019s deal with the Pentagon.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Similar pressure has been applied at Microsoft, Amazon, and Apple as cloud and AI services become more deeply embedded in government and military operations. There have also been several protests staged by tech workers over Project Nimbus specifically. In 2024, Google fired a number of people who protested against Project Nimbus.<\/p>\n
In 2025, Google also revised its AI principles that had previously pledged not to pursue technologies whose primary purpose was to cause harm, including weapons and certain surveillance uses, replacing them with a more general commitment to develop AI \u201cresponsibly\u201d and in line with applicable law. The move drew criticism from human rights groups and some employees at the time, who argued it weakened clear the red lines around military and surveillance use for which they had previously fought.<\/p>\n
Mounting scrutiny over government AI use\u00a0<\/p>\n
Investors say the core issue is whether Alphabet has sufficient visibility into how its tools are being used once governments deploy them.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Marcela Pinilla, director of sustainable investing at Zevin, told Fortune investors are seeking answers about the downstream use of Google\u2019s technology. Once a government customer has access to Google\u2019s cloud infrastructure and AI tools, they want to know if Google can actually see how that technology is being used and know that if it found evidence of misuse, it would intervene.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Investors say their concerns deepened after Alphabet revised its AI Principles in 2025\u2014a change they argue makes robust contractual safeguards and board-level oversight more critical.<\/p>\n
Joshua Brockwell, director of investment communications at Azzad Asset Management, a Muslim faith\u2011based investment firm that is part of the coalition, said he\u2019s concerned about a long\u2011term hit to Alphabet\u2019s ability to attract top talent.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cA large number of students and potential employees at Alphabet have pledged not to work for the company until it gets out of the business of aiding and abetting these kinds of potential human rights violations. That doesn\u2019t bode well for having the best and brightest available to help grow the value of the investment,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
There are also specific concerns over the potential for mass surveillance. AI technology has the capacity to aggregate disparate data streams\u2014such as location, biometric identifiers, communications metadata, and public records\u2014into detailed, real-time profiles of individuals and groups. Experts warn that even though it might argued that mass surveillance is unconstitutional in the U.S., because the collection or purchase of each individual piece of data may be legal, stitching this disparate data together to track individuals at scale falls into a legal gray area. <\/p>\n
\u201cWhat was before an innocuous data point now, with AI, can be combined and abundantly collected and sliced and diced to really hone in on families, individuals, and that is a huge worry on how the instrument of AI is going to be applied and accelerate conflict,\u201d Pinilla said.<\/p>\n
Alphabet has recommended that shareholders vote against the resolution, saying the company already has a \u201crobust, multi-layered framework for data privacy and security\u201d and that its existing disclosures \u201calready provide meaningful transparency.\u201d The company did not respond to a request for comment by press time.\u00a0<\/p>\n
There has already been pushback from other investors. The Anti-Defamation League and JLens\u2014an investment adviser that describes itself as aligning capital with Jewish values\u2014jointly urged shareholders to vote against Proposal 11, arguing in a public statement that the resolution singles out Israel through its focus on Project Nimbus.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Still, Pinilla says the NBIM backing is a significant boost to the coalition\u2019s efforts. \u201cThat announcement really supports that it\u2019s not Zevin and a handful of investors picking on Alphabet\u2014it\u2019s a real concern about systemic risk and human rights violations,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Kamil Zabielski, Head of Sustainable Investments at Storebrand Asset Management, another investor backing the resolution, told Fortune the stakes were financial as well as ethical.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cFor us, this is ultimately about whether Alphabet has adequate safeguards that are up to par to match the real-world risks of the use\u2014or misuse\u2014of its services, especially in high-risk conflict contexts,\u201d he said. \u201cFailures in managing human rights risks stemming from governance gaps can have real-life consequences and can lead to legal, regulatory, operational, and reputational consequences that affect long-term shareholder value.\u201d<\/p>\n
#Worlds #largest #sovereign #wealth #fund #backs #push #Google #oversight #government #contracts<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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