Microsoft, Amazon, and PayPal Executives All Have Seats on the Boards of Police Foundations
New research shows tech companies’ police involvement goes way beyond their products
In a recent letter to executives, hundreds of Microsoft employees asked the company, among other demands, to cancel its contracts with the Seattle Police Department and other law enforcement bodies, OneZero reported earlier this month. In the days following, Microsoft announced a moratorium on selling facial recognition software to police. Amazon and IBM pledged similar commitments. But the relationship between technology’s biggest companies often go much deeper than contracts and product purchases.
OneZero reviewed published research and publicly available information that reveals how these companies are intimately involved with police foundations across the country and are represented on police foundation boards of directors and donor lists. OneZero found a number of these types of partnerships in cities with a strong tech industry presence, including Seattle, San Jose, Washington, D.C., and Sacramento.
The Seattle Police Foundation cemented its relationship with Microsoft two years ago by welcoming Microsoft’s director of…
