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Some tech companies may have trouble taking money from the Ministry of Defense, but Amazon Jeff Bezos, its CEO, made this clear today at the Wired25 conference. Just last week, Google withdrew from the Pentagon's $ 10 billion $ 10 billion JEDI cloud computing contract, but Bezos said he was happy to take government money.
Bezos has been surprisingly unobtrusive about the contract so far, but his company has certainly attracted much attention from competing companies for the contract with JEDI. Just last week, IBM formally filed a claim with the Government Accountability Office, claiming that the contract was stacked in favor of a vendor. And although she did not name it directly, it clearly meant that the company was Bezos.
Last summer, Oracle also filed a protest and complained that it believed the government had put in place the contract in favor of Amazon, denied the spokesman of the charge Heather Babb. "The final JEDI cloud RFP reflects the unique and critical needs of DOD, applying best practices in security and competitive pricing. No supplier has been shortlisted, "she said last month.
While its competitors are obviously worried about Amazon, which holds a substantial lead in the cloud infrastructure market, the company itself has remained silent about the deal so far. Bezos has defined his company's support in patriotic and leadership terms.
"Sometimes, one of the tasks of the management team is to make the right decision, even when it is unpopular. And if the big tech companies turn their backs on the US Department of Defense, the country will be in trouble, "he said.
"I know that everyone is in conflict over the current politics of this country, but this country is a jewel," he added.
While Google was trying to define its decision as a principled position against the misuse of technology by the government, Bezos chose another solution, saying that any technology can be used for a fee or not. "The technologies are always bilateral. You know that there are ways to use them as well as they can, and this is not new, "Bezos told Wired25.
He is not wrong, of course, but it is difficult not to consider the size of the contract and to consider it as a mere commercial decision on his part. For this $ 10 billion deal, Amazon is as popular as its competitors. What is different in this presentation is that Bezos gave the impression of a purely patriotic, not an economic decision.
The Pentagon's JEDI contract could amount to $ 10 billion and have a maximum term of 10 years. The contract is designed as a two-year contract with two three-year options and one last for two years. The DOD may choose to practice before exercising the options.
The auction for the contract was closed last Friday. The DOD should choose the winning supplier next April.
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