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Use of AI, espionage: Why Iran threatened to target 18 US firms in the Gulf region
The 18 companies listed in the IRGC's threat included Microsoft, Google, Apple, Intel, IBM, Tesla and Boeing.
Iran's Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) has issued a warning to major American firms which operate in the West Asian region, warning that their infrastructure will be targeted.
The IRGC said that American companies, and not just those working on military bases, in the West Asia region will be targeted on April 1 if more Iranian leaders are killed.
The 18 companies listed in the IRGC's threat included Microsoft, Google, Apple, Intel, IBM, Tesla and Boeing. In a formal statement, Iran's Revolutionary Guards have alleged that these businesses have actively “assisted US-Israeli terror operations inside Iran by providing espionage services,” Iranian state media Press TV reported
‘AI used in designing terror ops’: IRGC
Iranian state media Press TV noted that the IRGC had categorised these firms as “espionage entities associated with the warmongering government of the United States.” The Guards further alleged that the “artificial intelligence (AI) and internet communication technology (ICT) services” used by these firms had been made “the main elements in designing terror operations and tracing assassination targets by the US and Israel inside Iran.”
The IRGC in the statement said that these companies, including the “big tech” firms like Apple, Google, Meta, and Microsoft, must be prepared for retaliatory strikes.
The Guards specified that the planned "reprisal attacks starting at 20:00 Iran time on April 1" would be devastating, ANI news agency reported. It warned that these companies' regional offices would be “annihilated.”
‘Main institutions involved in terrorist activities legitimate targets’: IRGC statement
Tehran has claimed that its previous diplomatic warnings were not heeded, asserting that the US and Israel had continued “terror operations” regardless of Iranian protests.
A targeted strike on Iran was also reported Tuesday, allegedly resulting in the deaths of several Iranian nationals. “In response to this terrorist operation, henceforth, the main institutions involved in terrorist activities will be considered legitimate targets,” the IRGC said in its statement.
The Guards urged employees working at these firms “to immediately leave their workplaces to protect their lives”, and advised residents living “within a one-kilometre radius” to evacuate.
