The Project Nimbus Files - Week 2 Part 1
Project Nimbus · Part 3 of 4 · 1 of 2
You know the contract. You know the workers who said no. This is what the technology actually does.
Named capabilities. Facial detection. Object tracking. Sentiment analysis. AutoML. Required weapons manufacturers. No audit rights. No usage restrictions. Their own documentation. No speculation.
The Intercept. July 2022. Google training materials obtained.
02 / 08
Facial detection. Object tracking. Sentiment analysis. From Google's own documentation.
Training materials obtained by The Intercept in July 2022 confirmed that Project Nimbus provides Israel with facial detection capabilities.
The materials also documented automated image categorisation, object tracking and sentiment analysis to assess the emotional content of pictures, speech and writing.
These are documented Google Cloud Platform capabilities confirmed in Google's own internal materials.
Google's Cloud Vision API can detect emotions based on facial expressions.
Google's AutoML allows rapid training of custom machine learning models on any dataset.
Source: The Intercept, Google training materials July 2022 · TIME Magazine April 2024, AutoML capabilities · TRT World October 2024, capabilities documentation
TIME Magazine. April 2024. Three Google workers on record.
03 / 08
AutoML lets any user train a custom AI model on any dataset they choose. Any dataset.
Three Google workers interviewed by TIME Magazine stated that the Israeli government could use AutoML to build a surveillance or targeting tool.
AutoML is a Google Cloud tool that allows a user to rapidly train a machine learning model using a custom dataset.
The user defines the objective.
The user provides the data.
Google Cloud trains the model.
There is no evidence of how Israel has used AutoML specifically.
There is also no oversight mechanism under the contract to find out.
The contract prohibits Google from restricting usage even if it breaches Google's own terms of service.
Source: TIME Magazine April 2024, three Google workers on record · +972 Magazine and The Guardian February 2026, contract terms prohibiting usage restrictions · The Intercept 2022
Google AI Principles. Published 2018. Applied to Project Nimbus. Never.
04 / 08
Google published AI principles in 2018. They do not apply to Israel under this contract.
Google's AI principles, published in 2018, state the company will not develop AI for weapons or technologies that cause or are likely to cause overall harm.
The principles are published on Google's own website.
Internal communications reveal that Google's AI principles specifically will not be applied to Israel under Project Nimbus.
The contract grants Israel significant autonomy.
Google cannot restrict usage even if it violates its own stated principles.
Source: Google AI Principles, ai.google/principles · New Cold War, April 2024, internal Google communications · WinBuzzer December 2024, adjusted terms of service documentation
The Intercept. May 2024. 63-page procurement document.
05 / 08
The Heron drone persistently surveils Gaza. It launches airstrikes. Its manufacturer is a required Nimbus user.
Israel Aerospace Industries, whose Heron drone provides persistent surveillance of Gaza and launches airstrikes, is a mandatory Nimbus customer.
IAI's Heron is frequently armed with Spike missiles from Rafael Advanced Defense Systems.
Rafael Advanced Defense Systems is also a mandatory Nimbus customer.
Both are state-owned.
Both use Google and Amazon cloud infrastructure by contract.
In July 2024, Wired obtained public statements from IDF officials detailing a much closer link between Project Nimbus and IDF operations than previously reported.
Source: The Intercept May 1 2024, 63-page procurement document, IAI and Rafael · Wired July 15 2024, IDF public statements on Nimbus · IAI Heron product documentation
The contract. What Google can and cannot see.
06 / 08
Google has no oversight mechanism under this contract. No visibility. No audit rights. No right to restrict.
The +972 Magazine and Guardian investigation published February 4 2026 confirmed the contract establishes a secure instance of Google Cloud on Israeli soil.
This means the Israeli government performs large-scale data analysis, AI training, database hosting and powerful computing with little oversight by Google.
The adjusted terms of service grant Israel autonomy over usage.
Google cannot see what Israel builds.
Google cannot stop it.
No audit rights.
No usage restrictions.
No transparency reports.
No hearings held.
Source: +972 Magazine, Local Call and The Guardian February 4 2026, leaked contract · TIME April 2024, "secure instance" on Israeli soil · WinBuzzer December 2024
We are not making a claim. We are asking a question.
07 / 08
Facial detection. Object tracking. Sentiment analysis. Custom AI models on any dataset. No audit rights. No usage restrictions. The Heron drone is a required user. What is being built with no one watching?
Google's own principles say it will not build AI for weapons.
The contract says those principles do not apply here.
Tomorrow: what followed.
No hearing.
No audit.
No suspension.
The silence that protects this.
The technology is documented. The oversight is not.
Tomorrow · Tuesday · Part 2 of 2
The gap between what is documented and what has followed. The question.