Microsoft significantly expanded its cloud computing and AI services to the Israeli military during its offensive in Gaza, according to leaked documents obtained by Drop Site News and analysed by the Guardian, +972 Magazine and Local Call.
According to a Guardian report published today, the documents reveal the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) increased its use of Microsoft’s Azure cloud storage by 60% in the first six months of the conflict compared to pre-war levels. Usage of Azure’s machine learning tools jumped 64-fold between September 2023 and March 2024.
After failing to secure a $1.2bn Israeli public sector cloud computing contract in 2021, Microsoft maintained strong military partnerships. The US tech giant struck deals worth approximately $10m to provide 19,000 hours of technical support to various IDF units through June 2024.
Microsoft’s services were used across air, ground and naval forces, as well as the intelligence directorate, including the elite Unit 8200 surveillance division and Unit 81, which develops spy technology. The company’s communications systems were used by Ofek, an air force unit managing target databases for strikes.
The files show Microsoft’s technology supported sensitive military operations, including maintenance of the “Rolling Stone” system, which manages Palestinian population registry and movement in Gaza and the West Bank. Microsoft engineers provided direct support to intelligence units both remotely and on military bases during the offensive.
The IDF faced increased computing demands at the start of its ground invasion, leading its central computing unit, Mamram, to purchase additional computing power from commercial providers. Unit commander Col Racheli Dembinsky told a Tel Aviv defence conference that cloud companies provided “crazy wealth of services” and “very significant operational effectiveness” in Gaza.
The documents also reveal increased military usage of OpenAI’s GPT-4 model through Microsoft’s Azure platform, accounting for 25% of the IDF’s machine learning tool consumption at one point in 2024. This followed OpenAI’s removal of restrictions on military use of its services in January 2024. OpenAI said it “does not have a partnership with the IDF” and prohibits use of its products to “develop or use weapons, injure others or destroy property”.
According to the Guardian, Microsoft declined to comment on the investigation’s findings. The IDF and Israel’s defence ministry also declined to comment.
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