Indian-American Engineer Vaniya Agrawal Disrupts Microsoft Event Again
Vaniya Agrawal, an Indian-American software engineer who gained notoriety for disrupting Microsoft’s 50th anniversary celebrations in April, has again created a disturbance at another high-profile Microsoft event. The latest incident occurred during the ongoing Microsoft Build 2025 developer conference.

Agrawal, along with Hossam Nasr, a former Microsoft employee, confronted Neta Haiby, Microsoft’s head of security for AI, during a session on best security practices for AI. The protest was against Microsoft’s cloud contracts with the Israeli government. This marks the third consecutive day of disruptions at the Microsoft Build 2025 conference due to Pro-Palestine protests.
The disruptions began on Monday, May 19, when an employee interrupted Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella’s keynote address, shouting “Free Palestine” and demanding accountability for the company’s work with the Israeli government. The next day, a Palestinian tech worker interrupted Microsoft executive Jay Parikh’s keynote presentation, marking the second consecutive day of pro-Palestine protests.
During the latest incident, Agrawal and Nasr shouted at Haiby while she was co-hosting a session alongside Sarah Bird, Microsoft’s head of responsible AI. The protesters demanded that Microsoft cut ties with Israel.
Agrawal was previously fired from Microsoft after she disrupted the company’s 50th anniversary celebration on April 4. During the event, she stood up and shouted, “Shame on you all. You’re all hypocrites. 50,000 Palestinians in Gaza have been murdered with Microsoft technology. How dare you. Shame on all of you for celebrating in their blood. Cut ties with Israel.” She was escorted out by security personnel.
Following her protest, Microsoft reportedly blocked emails containing certain words, including “Palestine” and “Gaza”, from being sent to recipients inside and outside the company, according to a report by The Verge.
Agrawal has been actively sharing photos of protests around Microsoft Build 2025 venues on social media platforms.
The TOI Tech Desk is a dedicated team of journalists committed to delivering the latest and most relevant news from the world of technology to readers of The Times of India.