Palantir defends surveillance tech as US government contracts boost sales

Palantir Technologies CEO Alex Karp defended the firm’s surveillance technology as it reported a big jump in sales on Monday, ‍saying it has safeguards to prevent government overreach, without mentioning US immigration enforcement efforts in Minnesota that have drawn widespread protests.The data analytics company said revenue derived from the US government spiked 66 per cent in the fourth quarter from the year-ago period to US$570 million. Total sales of US$1.41 billion exceeded analysts’ estimates and the firm anticipates a big jump in sales, in part due to government contracts ⁠in 2026.Companies working with US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) are attracting more scrutiny as Americans have turned solidly against ICE’s aggressive tactics following the fatal shootings of two US citizens in separate incidents in January. The company won a contract last year with ICE to develop surveillance systems for immigration enforcement.Over the weekend, France’s Capgemini said it would sell a small US unit that has a contract with ICE after criticism from French lawmakers and others.Palantir Technologies CEO Alex Karp. Photo: AFPIn a ‍post-earnings call, Karp said the company was “supporting in a critical manner, some of the most interesting, intricate, unusual operations that the US government has been involved in”, ‍but did not specify which government programmes Palantir was engaged in.Denver-based Palantir has increasingly been marketing military-grade AI tools to businesses through its artificial intelligence platform that helps companies integrate and develop the technology. It has emerged as one of the best-performing AI stocks, with ‌shares gaining 1,700 per cent over the last three years.