in his book Technical Republic, Alex Karp presents his view of the world and starts it off with a stark warning that Silicon Valley has lost its direction.
And carp isn’t just anyone. The billionaire was recently included in Time Magazine’s list of the 100 most influential people around the world. He is also the CEO of Palantir Technologies, a controversial data analytics software company.
Over the weekend, Palantir used its official corporate account on X to post a summary of Karp’s book in 22 bullet points. The thread feels like a political manifesto from the company – and it has sparked debate in both tech and political circles.
What are the main findings?
In its posts, Palantir positions itself at the intersection of technology and security policy, and expresses a wide range of opinions that fall into the following broad categories:
• Geopolitics and Security Policy: It states, “The nuclear age is coming to an end,” indicating that in the future deterrence will no longer be achieved through nuclear weapons, but through artificial intelligence-based systems.
And it goes even further: “The question is not whether AI weapons will be created; the question is who will create them and for what purpose.” Opponents will not remain lost in dramatic debates, but will move forward. Elsewhere, Palantir highlights the need for software-enabled hard power: “The limits of soft power, let alone escalating rhetoric, have been exposed.” Furthermore, it says that American power has enabled an exceptionally long period of peace.
At times, the manifesto is politically specific: “The postwar expulsions of Germany and Japan must be undone.” It states that Europe, weakly armed to this day, is paying a high price for Germany’s disarmament after World War II. And if “Japan’s overly dramatic commitment to pacifism” continues, the threat of regime change in Asia looms.
• Relationship between society and politics: Palantir says it is currently “prohibited” to discuss the differing track records of different “cultures”. It argues that the US should resist the temptation of “empty and hollow pluralism”. Both points match the MAGA ideology espoused by US President Donald Trump and his circle.
However, Palantir avoids openly promoting this ideology, as do some influential voices in Silicon Valley. It says, “The psychology of modern politics is leading us astray.” It argues that those who look to the political arena to nourish their soul and sense of self will ultimately be disappointed. Elsewhere, the company calls for pausing and reflecting rather than celebrating when defeating enemies.
• Role of technical sector: It repeatedly emphasizes the relationship between tech companies and the US government: “Silicon Valley owes a moral debt to the country that made its rise possible,” is its opening argument. Palantir advocates thinking beyond the “tyranny” of apps, instead promoting a tech economy that generates growth and security.
“Silicon Valley must play a role in addressing violent crime,” says the company, which sells its products to law enforcement agencies around the world.
What do the critics say?
Economist and former Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis shared the original post with the comment: “If Evil could tweet, this is what it would do!”
Dutch populism researcher Cass Mude described Palantir’s thread as a call for a world dominated by an authoritarian United States and controlled by techno-surveillance companies, calling it “technofascism pure!” relaxed me. On LinkedIn, Mudge said its worldview disqualifies Palantir as a business partner. Europe should not only stop any new cooperation but also “divest from this technofascist company as soon as possible!”
British blogger and founder of investigative platform Bellingcat Eliot Higgins shared a quote from Palantir’s world view with the sarcastic comment that it was “extremely normal and okay” for companies to make such statements.
What exactly is Palantir?
The name Palantir comes from JRR Tolkien’s fantasy epic “The Lord of the Rings.” In the story, there are so-called “seeing stones”, which are powerful communication devices used by villains who wish to subjugate the free people of Middle-earth.
The co-founder and lead investor is Peter Thiel, whose backing is seen as instrumental in the political rise of Donald Trump. Thiel was born in Frankfurt, Germany, where, coincidentally, Alex Karp later lived for many years.
On its website, Palantir promotes software designed to help governments and companies make real-time decisions – “from the factory floor to the front line.”
Who Uses Monitoring Software?
Many government agencies in the US use Palantir – for example, the Army Vantage program was developed specifically as an operating system for the US military. During the war against Iran, AI-powered target acquisition software Maven provided data for several air strikes.
Data analytics platform Foundry is used by government agencies in the US and Europe for a variety of purposes. For example, the Netherlands and Greece used the service to track the spread of the coronavirus.
Probably the most famous Palantir application is called Gotham and is used by security agencies to quickly gather information about individuals from public and non-public sources. Here too, US agencies like CIA and ICE, European security agencies are the major customers.
Several regional police forces in German states also use modified versions of Palantir, including Hesse and Bavaria. In North Rhine-Westphalia, a multi-year contract is set to expire in October – the state has issued a new call for bids for investigative software, in which Palantir and its competitors can participate.
The German government is also currently planning to introduce a law that would allow software to scan large amounts of publicly available data – such as voices and faces in social media posts – and create biometric profiles from it. This would facilitate investigations by security agencies using Palantir or competing applications. However, critics see it as a step towards a surveillance state.
This article was originally published in German.