INDEX / DIRECTORY / WAZE / MILITARY

Waze MILITARY

MILITARY AUDIT UPDATED 2026-07-04
Military Score 0.05 /10 C Waze - BDS-1000 584
Military 0.05

Evidence-only forensic audit. Scoring happens downstream - see the main dossier for the composite assessment.

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Military Audit: Waze

Direct Defence Contracting & Procurement

No public evidence identified of Waze holding a direct procurement contract, tender award, framework agreement, or MoU with the Israeli Ministry of Defence (IMOD), Israel Defence Forces (IDF), Israel Prison Service, or Israel Border Police in any public jurisdiction 1. No SIBAT listing, IMOD tender record, or DSCA FMS notification naming Waze specifically has been identified in available public records 1. The SEC EDGAR corporate filing search returned no results for Waze Mobile Ltd. 2.

Waze maintains an active operational relationship with IDF through a consultative coordination mechanism: the IDF’s Judea and Samaria Division provided Waze representatives with field tours to identify Palestinian areas where drivers frequently err, following which Waze added warning prompts at Qalandiyah, Nablus, Jenin, Gush Etzion, and Tul Karm 3. Waze confirmed this consultative relationship in August 2017 reporting by Haaretz 3.

IDF soldiers have used Waze directly in operational contexts on at least two documented occasions: in March 2016, two soldiers drove into Qalandia refugee camp using Waze, resulting in a Palestinian fatality, and Waze confirmed its safety mechanism had been manually disabled 4. In September 2016, two female IDF soldiers navigated into a Palestinian village in the West Bank using Waze and required rescue 5. Defense Minister Ya’alon issued standing orders against GPS app use by IDF soldiers following the March 2016 incident 4.

Waze Mobile Ltd. is registered at Electra Tower, 98 Yigal Alon, Tel Aviv-Jaffa, Israel, the same address as Google Israel Ltd. and Google Cloud Israel Ltd. 67. The Israeli Ministry of Defence’s listed operational zone encompasses this same Tel Aviv address 6.

Dual-Use Products & Tactical Variants

No public evidence identified of Waze manufacturing or marketing ruggedised, mil-spec, or defence-grade tactical variants of its navigation product; Waze is documented as a consumer-grade GPS navigation application 8. Waze maintains a default “avoid dangerous areas” safety feature that routes Jewish Israeli drivers away from Palestinian areas in the West Bank, specifically Area A under full Palestinian Authority control, with no equivalent routing protection documented for Palestinian drivers approaching Israeli areas 9. Waze’s publicly editable map platform has been subject to political editing campaigns over the labelling of the West Bank barrier: users alternately designated it “Security Fence” and “Separation Wall” with switching occurring multiple times daily, and Waze stated: “We’re a technology company, and we don’t take political stances. The data on our maps comes from Waze users.” 10.

No public evidence identified of Waze obtaining export licences or end-user certificates specific to Israeli defence or security end-users 11. Waze as a consumer GPS/navigation application most likely qualifies for EAR99 classification under US Export Administration Regulations; this classification has not been publicly confirmed by any Alphabet or US Bureau of Industry and Security disclosure 11. No Waze-specific ECCN classification, BIS advisory opinion, or export licence application was publicly identified 11.

Heavy Machinery, Construction & Infrastructure

Waze maps and provides routing for roads built to connect Israeli settlements in West Bank Area C to Israel, including newly constructed settlement-access roads 912. Rest of World (2025) and Wired investigations confirmed that Waze directs users to roads in Area C that are not available to Palestinian drivers 9. Israeli settlement officials explicitly link Waze routing to annexation objectives: the Shomrim investigation (April 2025) quotes Yoni Danino, Head of the Settlement Administration within the Israeli Defence Ministry, stating that if Waze recommends Routes 5 and 90 through Judea and Samaria, this will ultimately lead to sovereignty over the West Bank 12. The Shomrim investigation documented 139 new illegal roads (~116 km) built in the West Bank between mid-2023 and mid-2024, many routed for settler-only use, with Waze routing serving as the mechanism for normalising these roads in civilian navigation 12.

Waze’s publicly editable map platform exposes IDF base locations, outposts, and patrol routes to anyone with editor access 13. A Calcalist/CTech investigation (February 2025) confirmed that military base locations, outposts, troop movement patterns, and user-uploaded photographs of bases (despite photography prohibitions) were accessible in near-real time via Waze’s map-editing interface 13.

No public evidence identified of Waze holding direct construction or engineering contracts for checkpoints, detention facilities, the separation barrier, military bases, or settlement infrastructure; the confirmed relationship is navigational (routing to settlement roads, exposure of military base locations on an open editing platform) 1213. No public evidence identified distinguishing direct Waze sales to end-users from secondary-market resale in settlement contexts; Waze is a consumer app distributed via Google Play and the App Store with no authorised reseller or distributor network in the West Bank, East Jerusalem, or Golan Heights 14.

Supply Chain Integration with Defence Primes

No public evidence identified of Waze providing components, sub-systems, or specialist manufacturing services to Israeli defence prime contractors including Elbit Systems, Israel Aerospace Industries, Rafael Advanced Defense Systems, or IMI/Elbit Land 15. No public evidence identified of joint development programmes, co-production agreements, technology transfer arrangements, or licensed manufacturing agreements between Waze and Israeli defence firms 15.

Waze is listed as an Alphabet Inc. subsidiary in the Who Profits database entry for Google LLC (company ID 7400), categorised under “Settlement Enterprise,” “Population Control,” and “Economic Exploitation” 9. Under the same Google LLC entry, Project Nimbus is documented as connecting Google Cloud to Rafael, IAI/Elta, and Elbit Systems 9. Whether Waze is operationally integrated into the Project Nimbus infrastructure has not been established in available public records 9.

The “al Munasseq” Palestinian permit management app (developed by EvenDigital, operated by COGAT/Israeli Civil Administration, hosted on Google Play with 1.9 million downloads) is documented under the same Google LLC Who Profits entry as a manifestation of Alphabet’s “Population Control” activity 161718. The app requires extensive data access (IP address, device ID, geolocation, camera, files) and its terms of service permit use “for any purpose, including security purposes” 16. The App Store version lists the developer as “Government of Israel - Ministry of Defense” 18.

Waze shares its registered corporate address (Electra Tower, 98 Yigal Alon, Tel Aviv) with Google Cloud Israel Ltd., which is a direct counterparty in the Project Nimbus defence cloud contract 67. This constitutes address-level rather than contractual integration 67.

Logistical Sustainment & Base Services

No public evidence identified of Waze providing catering, transport, fuel supply, waste management, facilities maintenance, telecommunications, or other support services to IDF bases, military training facilities, or detention centres 19. No public evidence identified of Waze providing shipping, freight forwarding, or port handling services specifically servicing Israeli defence logistics or military cargo 19.

IDF soldiers’ use of Waze for navigation during operations constitutes an informal logistical dependency on Waze’s routing data, documented in two specific incidents (March 2016 and September 2016) and the broader IDF consultative relationship with Waze documented from 2017 345. The exposure of IDF base locations and patrol routes on Waze’s publicly editable platform (Calcalist, February 2025) constitutes a documented security risk to Israeli military installations arising from Waze’s platform architecture 13.

Munitions, Weapons Systems & Strategic Platforms

No public evidence identified of Waze manufacturing, assembling, or acting as prime contractor or licensed manufacturer for small arms, artillery systems, armoured vehicles, tactical drones, naval vessels, or other lethal platforms 20. No public evidence identified of Waze supplying ammunition, explosive ordnance, chemical propellants, warhead components, or munitions precursor materials to Israeli defence end-users 20. No public evidence identified of Waze providing components, integration, or maintenance services for strategic defence platforms including Iron Dome, David’s Sling, Arrow missile systems, fighter aircraft, main battle tanks, warships, or ballistic missile systems 20.

Alphabet/Google is documented as providing AI tools (facial recognition, object tracking, sentiment analysis via Vertex AI and Gemini) to IDF units through Project Nimbus 2122. Alphabet is named in UN A/HRC/59/23 (Albanese, July 2025) as “central to Israel’s surveillance apparatus and the ongoing Gaza destruction” 21. Waze is not separately named in this connection 2122.

Export Licensing, Regulatory & Legal History

No public evidence identified of government decisions to grant, deny, suspend, or revoke export licences specifically for Waze products to Israeli military or security end-users in any jurisdiction 11. No public evidence identified of investigations, citations, or enforcement actions related to Waze’s compliance with arms embargoes, export control regimes, or sanctions affecting defence trade with Israel 11. No public evidence identified of court proceedings, judicial reviews, or legal challenges brought specifically against Waze regarding defence supply relationships with Israel 23.

Alphabet/Google more broadly has faced employee protests and internal policy conflicts regarding Project Nimbus, culminating in the dismissal of 50+ employees in April 2024 23. Alphabet’s board formally lifted its 2018 AI ethics constraints on weapons and surveillance applications in February 2025 23.

Civil Society Scrutiny & Documented Investigations

Waze is listed as a Google LLC subsidiary in the Who Profits database (company ID 7400), categorised under “Settlement Enterprise,” “Population Control,” and “Economic Exploitation”; Waze does not appear to have a standalone entry in the Who Profits database 9. Alphabet/Google LLC appears in the OHCHR settlement enterprise database via the Google LLC entry, with Waze listed as an additional Alphabet-owned company, maintained under UN Human Rights Council Resolutions 31/36 and 53/25 9. Alphabet/Google is named in UN A/HRC/59/23 (Albanese, July 2025), §§28–47, as a company “central to Israel’s surveillance apparatus and the ongoing Gaza destruction” through Project Nimbus; Waze is not separately named in the report 2122.

AFSC Investigate maintains a profile for Alphabet Inc. covering Project Nimbus, Vertex AI, and connections to Israeli defence manufacturers Rafael and IAI/Elta; Waze is not separately profiled on AFSC Investigate 24. Alphabet appears on the Don’t Buy Into Occupation database; Waze is not separately listed on this database 25. Waze is listed as a standalone boycott target by the Big Beautiful Boycott campaign, which provides specific guidance to avoid Waze navigation and use alternatives including Apple Maps, HERE WeGo, OsmAnd, and OpenStreetMap; the boycott rationale is anchored in Alphabet’s broader political activities rather than Waze-specific military supply 26. The BDS Movement boycott guide lists Waze as a company entry distinct from generic Alphabet references, providing per-product boycott guidance 27. BankTrack maintains a profile for Google LLC covering concerns about human rights impacts 28.

Alphabet/Google matches employee donations to FIDF and HaYovel via the Benevity corporate giving platform, confirmed by leaked internal webpages (Business & Human Rights Resource Centre, December 2024; Middle East Eye, December 2024) 2930. FIDF supports IDF combat units; HaYovel sends volunteers to West Bank settlement farms 2930. Google Israel separately operates charitable giving through the Benevity platform with a $400 per-employee allocation, encouraging donations to Israeli emergency services including Magen David Adom, United Hatzalah, and ERAN crisis hotline post-October 2023 31.

No Tech for Apartheid targets Alphabet/Google and Amazon regarding Project Nimbus specifically; Waze is not the primary focus of this campaign, which has organised protests with over 1,100 students from 120+ universities pledging not to work at Google/Amazon until Project Nimbus is terminated 24.

Uri Levine (Waze co-founder) served in IDF Unit 8200 (signals intelligence/cyberwarfare), was first investor and board member of Waze, and received acquisition proceeds as co-founder 32. Post-Waze, Uri Levine served as board member at HERE Technologies (2016–2020) and Infosys (2020–2023), founded The Founders Kitchen VC fund (2019, Israeli focus), and co-founded the Double Down Fund ($40M, 2025) 32333435. Infosys and HERE Technologies have Israel operations; no defence-adjacent companies were identified in disclosed The Founders Kitchen portfolio 3334.

Amir Shinar (Waze co-founder) served in IDF Unit 8200, founded X.L.Net before Waze, served as VP R&D at Waze, owned 2.6% of Waze (with brother Gili), and received approximately $65 million from the Google acquisition 36. No post-Waze board positions or defence-adjacent ventures were retrieved in public records 36.

Ehud Shabtai (Waze co-founder) started the FreeMap Israel open-source project (2006) from which Waze emerged, with a software engineering background and IDF Unit 8200 service 836. No post-Waze defence-adjacent affiliations were retrieved 836.

At least six named Unit 8200 alumni work at Google, confirmed via Powerbase.info Unit 8200 alumni database: Ori Daniel (Head of Global Self-Service for Google Waze), Gavriel Goidel (Head of Strategy and Operations at Google), Jonathan Cohen (Head of Insights, Data and Measurement at Google), Ben Bariach (Product Partnership Manager at Google), Gai Gutherz (Software Engineer), and Lior Liberman (Software Engineer) 37. A separate Drop Site News investigation (August 2025) documented at least 99 Google employees with Unit 8200 backgrounds via LinkedIn data 38.

No pre-acquisition Waze board members (2008–2013) with disclosed defence-industry directorships, settlement NGO affiliations, or named military-channel acts were identified in public records 36. Seed investors confirmed: Magma Venture Partners, Vertex Venture Capital (Series A, 2008), BlueRun Ventures, Qualcomm Ventures (Series B, 2010), Horizon Ventures, and Kleiner Perkins (Series C, 2011) 36. Jason Wong of Horizon Ventures was appointed to the Waze board; no individual investor with disclosed Israeli defence-sector ties was identified in public records 36.

Waze Mobile Ltd. is a subsidiary of Alphabet Inc. incorporated in Israel, listed at the same registered address (Electra Tower, 98 Yigal Alon, Tel Aviv) as Google Israel Ltd. and Google Cloud Israel Ltd. 6739. Google LLC (Alphabet’s operating entity) is documented on Who Profits under “Settlement Enterprise,” “Population Control,” and “Economic Exploitation” categories; the profile explicitly covers Google products including Waze 9. Google Cloud Israel Ltd. is a direct counterparty in the $1.2B Project Nimbus cloud contract (awarded April 2021) with the Israeli government, explicitly including the Ministry of Defence, IDF, Israeli Police, Israel Prison Service, COGAT, Rafael, IAI/Elta, and Elbit Systems 92440.

End Notes

Footnotes

  1. https://www.sec.gov/cgi-bin/browse-edgar?company=waze&owner=include&action=getcompany ↩ ↩2

  2. https://www.sec.gov/cgi-bin/browse-edgar?company=waze&owner=include&action=getcompany ↩

  3. https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/2017-08-02/ty-article/waze-consults-idf-to-prevent-misdirected-drivers-in-west-bank/0000017f-e873-df5f-a17f-fbff8fb30000 ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  4. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/mr/01/israeli-soldiers-waze-app-use-leads-to-deadly-fight-in-palestinian-west-bank-camp ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  5. https://forward.com/israel/349923/waze-mishap-leads-israeli-soldiers-into-harms-way-on-west-bank-again ↩ ↩2

  6. https://www.ivc-online.com/Google-Card?id=c64606cb-d305-e411-b941-80c16e7d3630 ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5

  7. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electra_Tower ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4

  8. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waze ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  9. https://www.whoprofits.org/companies/company/7400 ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7 ↩8 ↩9 ↩10

  10. https://www.timesofisrael.com/politics-drives-waze-users-to-edit-apps-israeli-map ↩

  11. No Waze-specific BIS/ECC filing, ECCN classification, EAR advisory opinion, or export licence application publicly identified in available records. ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5

  12. https://www.shomrim.news/eng/paving-the-way-to-annexation ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4

  13. https://www.calcalistech.com/ctechnews/article/r1ik71ltje ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4

  14. No authorised reseller or distributor network for Waze identified in the West Bank, East Jerusalem, or Golan Heights. ↩

  15. No Waze defence-prime supply chain or joint development with Israeli defence primes identified in available records. ↩ ↩2

  16. https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.evendigitals.elmunasek ↩ ↩2

  17. https://www.appbrain.com/app/almunasseq/com.evendigitals.elmunasek ↩

  18. https://apps.apple.com/us/app/al-munasiq/id1455208205 ↩ ↩2

  19. No public evidence identified of Waze providing catering, transport, fuel supply, waste management, facilities maintenance, telecommunications, shipping, freight, or port handling services to IDF bases, military training facilities, or detention centres. ↩ ↩2

  20. No public evidence identified of Waze involvement in manufacturing, assembling, or supplying munitions, weapons systems, or strategic defence platforms. ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  21. https://docs.un.org/en/A/HRC/59/23 ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4

  22. https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/7/1/un-report-lists-companies-complicit-in-israels-genocide-who-are-they ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  23. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_companies_involved_in_the_Gaza_war ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  24. https://investigate.afsc.org/company/alphabet ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  25. https://dontbuyintooccupation.org/company/google-llc ↩

  26. https://bigbeautifulboycott.us/company/waze ↩

  27. https://bdsmovement.net/Guide-to-BDS-Boycott ↩

  28. https://www.banktrack.org/company/googlellc ↩

  29. https://www.business-humanrights.org/it/latest-news/google-allegedly-matches-donations-to-charities-supporting-israeli-soldiers-illegal-settlements ↩ ↩2

  30. https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/google-criticised-matching-donations-charities-supporting-israeli-soldiers-settlements ↩ ↩2

  31. https://www.clevelandjewishnews.com/nns/google-backs-unrwa-donation-despite-oct-7-role/article_5cf0fc66-08f0-5e26-aefa-e5cf611016e3.html ↩

  32. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uri_Levine ↩ ↩2

  33. https://founders.kitchen ↩ ↩2

  34. https://finder.startupnationcentral.org/investor_page/the-founders-kitchen ↩ ↩2

  35. https://www.ie.edu/university/about/faculty/uri-levine ↩

  36. https://startupintros.com/orgs/waze ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7

  37. https://powerbase.info/index.php/Unit_8200 ↩

  38. https://www.dropsitenews.com/p/israel-technology-palo-alto-networks-microsoft-unit-8200 ↩

  39. https://support.google.com/waze/answer/12075342 ↩

  40. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_Nimbus ↩