Google DeepMind employees demand the lifting of a ban on criticizing the company

Employees of the London branch of Google DeepMind have spoken out against the restrictions written into their employment contracts, which prohibit public criticism of the company. According to The Washington Post, some agreements contain clauses that effectively apply throughout the employee's career, even after their termination.

Employees of Google DeepMind claim that these non-disclosure and criticism clauses prevent them from making public statements about the potential risks and negative consequences of the development of artificial intelligence. One employee noted that the public has a right to know about the potential harm from new technologies, and information from people who are directly involved in their development is an important source of such data.

Discontent within the company has intensified after Sofia Ligorio, a former employee of Google DeepMind, publicly spoke out against Google's development of military artificial intelligence technologies. Following this, current employees began reviewing their contracts and discovered similar restrictions. In response to the internal discussion, Google stated that it would not enforce the policy prohibiting criticism of former employees, and also changed the terms of new employment contracts, removing restrictions that continued to apply after leaving the company. However, employees insist that these changes are not sufficient and demand a review of existing contracts to ensure freedom of expression for all employees.