Does Defeat Mean Death For Putin? 'If You Fail, You Will Be Killed,' Says Palantir CEO Alex Karp

In a rare address to the nation in September, Russian President Vladamir Putin made it clear he wouldn't hold back from using nuclear weapons in defense of Russia.

Now Palantir Technologies Inc PLTR CEO Alex Karp is warning that the threat of nuclear war is real.

What Happened: Putin on Wednesday (Sep. 21) announced Russia's first mobilization since World War II and warned he's not bluffing when it comes to using nuclear weapons to defend Russia. 

"I want to remind you that our country also has various means of destruction, and for separate components and more modern than those of NATO countries, and when the territorial integrity of our country is threatened, to protect Russia and our people, we will certainly use all the means at our disposal," Putin said.

Karp on Thursday (Sep. 22) indicated that Putin has underestimated his enemies.

"Software plus heroism can really slay the giant," the Palantir CEO said on CNBC's "Squawk Box."

Russia has underestimated the power of such, he said. But, the problem is that failure is not an option for Putin, which increases the threat of nuclear war, Karp added.

"I believe it's a zero-sum game in Russia and there is no ability for Putin to lose. He can't just fail at war and then retire," Karp said.

This is much different than what the West is used to. Politicians, for example, fail all the time and are simply replaced by another politician, he said.

"You are backed into a corner where the corner is: if you fail, you will be killed," Karp said about Putin.

Related Link: Is Putin's Latest Order Making Russians Flee? Most Flights Out Of The Country Sell Out, Others Priced Sky-High

Why It Matters: Karp suggested the war could end if Putin fails, but it doesn't look like a failure. However, Karp didn't provide a specific solution.

"My job is to actually deliver something that works and wins. There are people whose whole professions are to help you explain to your people why it wasn't a failure. I don't do that for a living, but I do know that somebody that does that for a living needs to be very engaged right now," Karp said.

Relative to expectations, Ukraine has massively outperformed in the war, which Karp chalked up as a win. He suggested that Ukraine's use of Palantir software is going to change the ways wars are fought. 

"Here you have a tiny country with very little assets and in the use of software and heroism, you can push off and win against a Goliath," he said. 

"With 100% certainty, every country in the world that is big is saying, 'Holy sh*t!, we thought we could just win because we're big. If the people are willing to fight to die and if they have very specialized, not very costly software and other products ... they can outperform us and grind us into the dust,' and that changes the way the world actually works today," Karp added.

PLTR Price Action: Palantir has a 52-week high of $18.84 and a 52-week low of $6.44.

Originally published on Sep. 22, 2022

Photo: manhhai from Flickr.