Novara Media Novara FM: Palantir Technologies and the Age of Automated Genocide w/ Matt Mahmoudi
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Jun 5, 2025 Matt Mahmoudi, an Assistant Professor in Digital Humanities at the University of Cambridge and AI researcher for Amnesty International, discusses the chilling automation of the genocide in Gaza. He reveals how technologies like Palantir intensify violence against marginalized communities and critiques the facade of neutrality in tech companies' roles. The conversation highlights the ethical dilemmas of surveillance systems, the complicity of big tech in state violence, and the urgent need for resistance against these oppressive narratives.
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AI Controls Movement in Hebron
- The Red Wolf system in Hebron uses AI to decide Palestinians' access at checkpoints with green, yellow, or red light signals.
- Soldiers reported the system overruled their knowledge, denying Palestinians passage and intensifying dehumanization.
Gamified Surveillance of Palestinians
- Israeli soldiers were incentivized to photograph Palestinian faces, boosting facial recognition databases via the Blue Wolf app.
- This gamified surveillance automated apartheid, enabling arbitrary stops and detentions with increasing efficiency.
Gaza as Genocide Tech Lab
- The Gaza genocide serves as a live testing ground for AI-driven surveillance and targeting systems.
- Big tech companies provide critical infrastructure enabling the Israeli military's genocidal policies.
