Google employees sign petition protesting work on secret Chinese search engine project

Google employees, upset over reports of a secretive search engine project for China, have signed a petition asking for more transparency from company leaders. SAN FRANCISCO -- Hundreds of Google employees have signed a petition protesting a secret project to develop a search engine for China, the latest example of tech workers rebelling against corporate policies that push moral boundaries. The letter, which was posted by Buzzfeed and first reported by The New York Times, says Google's decision to work with China raises "urgent moral and ethical issues," and that employees "do not have the information required to make ethically-informed decisions" about their work, projects and employment. The employees, who represent a fraction of parent company Alphabet's workforce of 89,000, also were upset by the secrecy of the project and in the petition demanded more transparency about the company's myriad ventures, which range from self-driving cars to advanced artificial intelligence. Google was scheduled to have a regular company-wide meeting between senior leadership and global employees late Thursday, during which in-person and remote staffers can ask any question they want.