Dozens looked on at Microsoft’s headquarters in Redmond, Washington, as software engineer Vaniya Agrawal disrupted the company’s high-profile 50th anniversary celebration by confronting its top leadership.

Agrawal interrupted a keynote panel featuring CEO Satya Nadella and former CEOs Bill Gates and Steve Ballmer, accusing the tech giant of complicity in Israel’s ongoing assault on Gaza. She was swiftly escorted out after publicly calling the executives “hypocrites” and demanding Microsoft “cut ties with Israel.”

“Shame on all of you for celebrating in their blood,” she yelled, referring to the company’s alleged provision of advanced cloud and artificial intelligence technologies to the Israeli military.

Since Israel’s offensive on Gaza began in October 2023, multiple reports have pointed to US tech companies — including Microsoft — as enablers of the Israeli army’s expanding digital infrastructure during a bombardment campaign that has devastated much of the enclave and killed more than 50,000 Palestinians.

But according to Agrawal, who was fired shortly after the protest, Microsoft’s involvement goes much further back.

“Even before October 7, Microsoft has played a role in the continuation of apartheid and genocide in Gaza,” Agrawal said. The company, she asserted, is “powering genocide.”

Show of dissent

“Over the past year and a half, we’ve started to learn more and more about how exactly those ties manifest and how Microsoft and its services have enabled and accelerated the genocide in Gaza.”

She said that internal attempts to raise alarms about the company’s collaboration with Israel were systematically suppressed. “They’ve declined to comment on the investigations. They evade questions internally. They deleted comments from workers asking for explanations.”

Despite what she described as an attempt to silence dissent, Agrawal said employees across Microsoft’s global offices took quiet action in solidarity. Some joined a strike responding to a Gaza call to action, while others changed their status messages or set out-of-office replies in a show of dissent.

Agrawal emphasised the importance of collective action.

“We have power in our numbers, and resistance isn’t a solitary endeavor. It only survives in the arms of the collective,” she said.

She noted that following the protests, Microsoft executives began turning off comments on celebratory social media posts — evidence, she claimed, that the company was feeling the pressure.

“It’s very clear their image has been tarnished, and the world sees now that they’re hypocrites,” she repeated. “They can’t hide behind their philanthropy or their prestige any longer.”

On the same day, fellow Microsoft techie Ibtihal Aboussad — also part of the “No Azure for Apartheid” campaign — interrupted a separate keynote speech by Microsoft AI CEO Mustafa Suleyman.

Aboussad called Suleyman a “war profiteer” and said: “You claim that you care for using AI for good, but Microsoft sells AI weapons to the Israeli military. Fifty thousand people have died, and Microsoft powers this genocide in our region.”

“We felt that no celebration should be allowed while Microsoft is playing an active role in the genocide of Palestinians in Gaza,” Agrawal said.

Growing wave of worker resistance

Agrawal said her access to internal systems was cut just 30 minutes after the protest. Though she had already submitted her resignation, effective April 11, the company terminated her employment early on April 7.

Aboussad was also fired the same day, with Microsoft citing “willful misconduct” and accusing her of being aggressive and unapologetic.

“We were cut completely and left in the dark, and it stayed that way for three days,” Agrawal said.

A graduate of Arizona State University, Agrawal says she will continue campaigning for “No Azure for Apartheid.” She remains focused on pushing Microsoft and other tech firms to divest from Israel.

“All I’ve ever wanted in life is to stand up for something that I feel is important and meaningful and is making a difference,” she said. “The only thing I know for sure that I will continue to do is take action and make our demands clear of Microsoft and all these other tech companies.”

She urged other tech workers to speak out — even if they fear professional repercussions.

“I know, the current climate in the world, especially in the US, makes it very scary for tech workers and others to speak up and take a stand,” she said. “I want to tell everybody that there are ways to be involved and to take action without putting yourself in the line of fire.”