Tech giant Palantir posts âotherworldlyâ growth despite criticism over Gaza
Second-quarter revenue jumped 93 percent but Palantirâs ties to Israel and role in military technology are controversial. United States artificial intelligence and data analytics giant
Second-quarter revenue jumped 93 percent but Palantirâs ties to Israel and role in military technology are controversial. United States artificial intelligence and data analytics giant Palantir Technologies has reported âotherworldlyâ quarterly results, sending its shares more than 14 percent higher in after-hours trading, as its growth shows no signs of slowing despite mounting criticism over its close ties to the US and Israeli governments and concerns about its growing role in artificial intelligence and warfare. Palantir Technologies reported a revenue of $1.94bn for the second quarter, up 93 percent from a year earlier, and raised its forecast annual revenue to between $8.15bn and $8.158bn, up from $7.65bn to $7.662bn earlier. It said strong demand from both commercial customers and government agencies drove the surge.
âThis quarter was otherworldly: our US commercial revenue grew 149 percent year-over-year, our overall revenue grew 93 percent year-over-year,â Chief Executive Alex Karp said. âDemand for AI sovereignty has now been unleashed.â In a letter to shareholders, Karp wrote: âOur business is compounding at a rate and scale that we have never before witnessed.â Palantir holds multibillion-dollar contracts with US government agencies, including the US Army. Revenue from its US government business rose 90 percent year on year to $809m, even as the company has faced growing opposition over its role in President Donald Trumpâs immigration crackdown, which critics say has resulted in unlawful deportations and killings. Founded in 2003 by technology entrepreneurs including Karp and multi-billionaire Peter Thiel, Palantir opened its first office in Israel in 2015 and has since expanded its work with the Israeli military.
Following what Palantir described as a âstrategic partnershipâ with Israel in January 2024, the company significantly expanded its operations supporting Israelâs military campaign in Gaza and operations in the occupied West Bank. According to Open Intel, a platform tracking corporate involvement in the genocidal war on Gaza, Palantir has actively recruited former members of Israelâs elite Unit 8200 cyberintelligence division. The group says Palantirâs software integrates intercepted communications, satellite imagery and other datasets to help generate military targeting lists for Israeli forces. In a statement to Al Jazeera earlier this year, Palantir UK reiterated the companyâs support for Israel. The company has also secured major contracts with the United Kingdomâs government. In January, the UKâs Ministry of Defence awarded Palantir a $323m (240-million-pound) contract.
