Welcome to Axis Pro Radha, a podcast that gets you smarter on the collision of tech business and politics.

I'm Dan Premack. On today's show, Elon Musk explains himself and a stunning decision in the

Scooter Wars. But first, Silicon Valley versus the U.S. military.

Earlier this year, it was reported that Google was working with the Department of Defense

on something called Project Maven, which is basically artificial intelligence software

for analyzing drone footage, and theoretically, could be used to improve targeting for drone strikes.

Now, it seems this had been a very well-kept secret inside of Google, because when it came out,

thousands of Google employees signed a petition, which read in part, quote, Google should not be

in the business of war. A few folks even quit over it, and in the end, Google relented, saying it

won't renew the contract when it expires next year. But the big picture here goes far beyond

Google and one specific contract. Instead,

it's about whether or not tech is willing to work with the U.S. military, particularly on

artificial intelligence, which a lot of military leaders see as imperative for maintaining an

advantage over countries like Russia and China. Now, to be clear, Silicon Valley's hesitance here

isn't about money because the U.S.

military has plenty of that. Instead, it's a bit about morality, particularly for techies who don't

believe weaponry is consistent with their mission to make the world a better place, and also a bit

about politics, because the vast majority of Silicon Valley opposes President Trump and doesn't

necessarily trust what he might do with their work. It's really the sort of

thing that requires both sides to sit down and agree to some overarching principles, perhaps ones that

could be applied no matter who's in the White House, but the reality of politics right now is that

things are so divided, that's kind of a future aspiration instead of a present possibility.

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