From The Verge · Elizabeth Lopatto · · 2m
Palantir CEO's sudden pivot to 'progressive' rings hollow
Alex Karp claims his company is progressive after years of defending military violence, anti-woke rhetoric and attacks on Democrats.
In brief
Alex Karp claims his company is progressive after years of defending military violence, anti-woke rhetoric and attacks on Democrats. Palantir CEO Alex Karp claimed his company is progressive after recent elections, contradicting years of public statements defending military lethal force and attacking Democrats…
Karp claims Palantir is progressive
Palantir CEO Alex Karp told Politico he has been a Democrat his whole life and that all of Palantir's products are essentially progressive.
“I've been a Democrat my whole life. I grew up in a far left environment. I know more about being a progressive than almost anybody on the planet, and I absolutely believe Palantir, all of our products are essentially progressive.”
August 2024: defending border enforcement
Karp told Maureen Dowd he would not apologize for defending the U.S. government on the border and defending Special Operations.
“I'm not going to apologize for defending the U.S. government on the border, defending the Special Ops, bringing the people home.”
February 2025: organized violence quote
In a shareholder letter, Karp quoted Samuel Huntington on the West's rise being enabled by superiority in applying organized violence, not ideas or values.
“the rise of the West was not made possible 'by the superiority of its ideas or values or religion . . . but rather by its superiority in applying organized violence.'”
February 2025: making America lethal
Palantir announced it is making America more lethal by analyzing data for U.S. armed forces to anticipate enemies' moves and locate their coordinates to kill them.
“making America more lethal by analyzing troves of data for the U.S. armed forces and allies to help them anticipate enemies' moves, locate their coordinates 'and, on occasion, kill them.'”
November 2025: anti-woke positioning
On an earnings call, Karp declared Palantir is the first company to be completely anti-woke, marking a sharp contrast to his recent progressive claims.
“the first company to be completely anti-woke”
November 2025: talking to Nazis
Karp said on an earnings call that he spends a lot of time talking to Nazis, describing them as real Nazis without further context or explanation.
“I spend a lot of time talking to Nazis. Like, real Nazis.”
November 2025: attacking Democrats on masculinity
Karp criticized Democrats for neglecting males and said high-testosterone masculinity is admirable, claiming Democrats have something wrong with their general vibe.
“Democrats just completely neglect males. ... It's admirable to be a ... high-testosterone male.”
November 2025: competition is political
Karp said Palantir's competition is political, claiming the woke left and woke right wake up figuring out how to hurt Palantir, and universities play a corrosive role.
“Our competition is political. The woke left and the woke right wake up every day, figuring out how they can hurt Palantir.”
April 2026: undoing postwar settlements
In a manifesto, Karp wrote that the postwar neutering of Germany and Japan must be undone, calling the defanging of Germany an overcorrection Europe is paying for.
“The postwar neutering of Germany and Japan must be undone. The defanging of Germany was an overcorrection for which Europe is now paying a heavy price.”
April 2026: cultures ranked by advancement
Karp's manifesto stated some cultures have produced vital advances while others remain dysfunctional and regressive, then claimed all cultures are now equal and criticism is forbidden.
“Some cultures have produced vital advances; others remain dysfunctional and regressive. All cultures are now equal. Criticism and value judgments are forbidden.”
Pattern of contradictions undermines credibility
Karp's sudden claim to progressivism contradicts three years of public statements defending military violence, attacking Democrats and embracing anti-woke positioning consistently.
The main idea
Palantir CEO Alex Karp claimed his company is progressive after recent elections, contradicting years of public statements defending military lethal force and attacking Democrats.
