Tech giant Palantir posts ‘otherworldly’ growth despite criticism over Gaza

Second-quarter revenue jumped 93 percent but Palantir’s ties to Israel and role in military technology are controversial.United States Artificial Intelligence and data analytics giant Palantir Technologies has reported “otherworldly” 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.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3Technofacism? Why Palantir’s pro-West ‘manifesto’ has critics alarmedlist 2 of 3‘Potential security risk’: Unpacking the UK’s trust issues with Palantirlist 3 of 3From Manchester to Downing Street: What Burnham could mean for Palantirend of list“This quarter was otherworldly: our US commercial revenue grew 149 percent year-over-year, our overall revenue grew 93 percent year-over-year,” Chief Executive Alex Karp said. “Demand for AI sovereignty has now been unleashed.”In a letter to shareholders, Karp wrote: “Our business is compounding at a rate and scale that we have never before witnessed.”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 Trump’s 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.