Public support for Israel by the CEO of Palantir Technologies Inc. PLTR has led to employees leaving the company and more are expected to depart.
What Happened: Alex Karp, the CEO of the software firm, on Wednesday, in an interview with CNBC expressed his support for Israel.
We’ve lost employees. I’m sure we’ll lose employees,” Karp said responding to questions about personnel turnover due to the company’s controversial stances.
"If you have a position that does not cost you ever to lose an employee, it's not a position."
Palantir, known for its defense and intelligence contract work for governments, has provided technology to support both the Ukrainian and Israeli militaries in their respective wars.
Karp expressed pride on Palantir’s earnings call last month, stating that the company was involved in “operationally crucial operations in Israel” within weeks of an Oct. 7 rampage by Hamas, a Palestinian militant group, in southern Israel.
In November, Karp asserted the company’s support of the U.S. government and Israel, declaring that “Palantir only supplies its products to Western allies.”
Why It Matters: Palantir has been actively involved in providing technology support for the Israeli military. In January, the company entered into a strategic partnership with the Israeli Ministry of Defense to supply technology for its military efforts.
However, the company’s support for Israel has also sparked controversy. In December 2023, Palantir’s UK office was blocked by activists from Healthcare Workers for Palestine due to the company’s support for Israel.
Last year, Karp’s colleague and Palantir co-founder, Joe Lonsdale, stressed the need to keep the “good guys armed and ahead” in the Israel-Hamas conflict.
Despite the controversy, Palantir’s stock has been performing well. On Wednesday, the stock closed at $25.00, marking a 1.21% increase from the previous day’s close, according to data from Benzinga Pro.
Meanwhile, last week, Palantir secured a $178.4 million contract with the U.S. Army to develop 10 artificial intelligence-powered ground stations for a project named Tactical Intelligence Targeting Access Node (TITAN).
Photo by Cory Doctorow via Flickr
This content was partially produced with the help of Benzinga Neuro and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
© 2024 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
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