Salesforce Inc (NYSE:CRM) shares have been hit hard in recent weeks as investors see struggles for the software sector in the growing world of artificial intelligence use cases. The company now faces another internal struggle, with employees upset about a joke made about ICE and potentially working with the government immigration agency.
Salesforce's ICE Dilemma
Salesforce aired a Super Bowl commercial featuring MrBeast during Sunday's NFL championship. It isn't that ad that is making headlines about Salesforce, instead it’s reports of a joke made by Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff at the company's annual leadership event on Monday.
According to a report from WIRED, Benioff had international employees stand during the event to recognize their service. The CEO then made a joke that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents were in the building keeping an eye on them.
The joke has not gone over well with Salesforce employees, who have also learned that the company is reportedly pitching ICE on using its Agentforce AI technology.
WIRED reports that Salesforce employees have been signing a letter for Benioff, calling on the CEO to denounce the actions of ICE, keep Salesforce technology away from the government agency, and back federal legislation to keep the actions of the government agency in check.
Benzinga reached out to Salesforce for comment.
The letter refers to the "devastating indictment of a system that has discarded human decency," while referencing the deaths of Renee Good and Alex Pretti, both killed in Minnesota during ICE's escalation in the state.
"We are deeply troubled by leaked documentation revealing that Salesforce has pitched AI technology to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to help the agency ‘expeditiously' hire 10,000 new agents and vet tip-line reports," the letter says.
The letter also says that using Agentforce would be a "fundamental betrayal of our commitment to the ethical use of technology."
Benioff drew backlash in late 2025 after publicly saying he supported sending the National Guard to San Francisco to help address crime. He later apologized and walked back those remarks following criticism, and President Donald Trump subsequently called off a planned federal deployment.
Companies and ICE Partnerships Face Pressure
While politics have sometimes divided employees and created tension between management and workers, the unpopularity of ICE on a national level has more people speaking out.
Companies that reportedly work with ICE like Palantir Technologies (NASDAQ:PLTR) have faced pressure from employees and investors. Some investors see potential ethical dilemmas in being shareholders of companies doing actions that are viewed by many as disruptive.
Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) cancelled a partnership for its Ring unit that would have involved the company working with Flock Safety. The company faced backlash from a Super Bowl commercial highlighting Ring's technology and also faced pressure over Flock Safety's reported ties to ICE, which that company has denied.
Companies like Salesforce, which offer AI technology that could be used by government agencies, now face more dilemmas in battling public perception and employee pushback.
Salesforce Stock Price Action
Salesforce stock is up 2.8% to $190.53 on Friday versus a 52-week trading range of $180.24 to $329.74. Salesforce stock is down 25% year-to-date in 2025 and down 42% over the last 52 weeks.
Photo: bluestork / Shutterstock
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