INSIDE THE WORLD'S SCARIEST AI COMPANY

Palantir has become one of the most influential and least understood tech companies on the planet. As its reach spreads, so do questions about how its tools work and who they ultimately serve

- TOM KNOWLES

Welcome to the paradoxical world of Palantir Technologies, an American data analytics company whose clients include some of the most secretive organisations on the planet, as well as some of the most beloved.

If you're reading this and wondering what Palantir is and what it does, well, that’s how the Denver-based firm seems to like it. Descriptions of Palantir in the press often use terms such as ‘mysterious’, ‘shadowy’ and ‘secretive’. It’s no surprise really, since the aura of intrigue around the company has been “meticulously cultivated” by its management, according to Michael Steinberger in The Philosopher in the Valley, a biography of Palantir and its chief executive Alex Karp.

Yet that’s beginning to change. Karp is becoming more vocal about Palantir’s achievements, arguing that the company deserves more recognition for its work. But Palantir’s critics have become more vocal, too.

In the US, the company is facing growing criticism for its contract with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) under President Donald Trump’s administration. In the UK, the firm’s £330m deal with the National Health Service (NHS) is worrying both privacy advocates and some doctors. And in the Middle East, the use of its tools by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has angered some of Palantir’s employees and investors.

So, what does Palantir do and why has it become so important on the world stage?

FOUNDRY AND GOTHAM