More than 100 students staged a walkout during Stanford University's graduation ceremony shortly after Google CEO Sundar Pichai began delivering the commencement address, media reports said on Sunday.
Videos shared on social media showed graduates leaving their seats at Stanford Stadium while chanting “Free, free Palestine.”
The protest took place moments after Pichai, who was invited to deliver the keynote speech, took the stage at the ceremony.
According to the New York Post, the demonstration was organised by groups including Students for Justice in Palestine and No Tech for Apartheid.
The report said the protest drew attention to ongoing activism related to the war in Gaza and criticism of major technology companies' ties to government and military projects.
The walkout unfolded in front of graduates, faculty members and guests attending the commencement ceremony.
Neither Stanford University nor Google have commented on the reports.
The graduation ceremony continued following the protest as Pichai proceeded with his address to the graduating class.
Google has faced scrutiny for its role in helping with the Israeli genocide.
What is Project Nimbus?
Project Nimbus is a joint venture between Google and Amazon Web Services (AWS) to supply the Israeli government with cloud computing infrastructure, artificial intelligence (AI), and other tech services.
When unveiled in April 2021, the Israeli government described it as intended to "provide a comprehensive and thorough response for the provision of cloud services to the government, the defence establishment and other entities."
The scale and scope of the project have led to widespread demonstrations by employees and activists.
Since the start of Israel’s genocide on Gaza on October 8, 2023, nearly 73,000 Palestinians have been killed and more than 173,000 injured, while about 90 percent of the territory’s civilian infrastructure has been destroyed.
Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians continue to live in tents and temporary shelters across Gaza after their homes were destroyed or severely damaged during the war, forcing repeated displacement and leaving many in camps lacking basic services and necessities.
