What is Palantir?
The AI Operating System for Government and Enterprise
- Category
- AI & Data Analytics Platform
- Headquarters
- Aventura, FL (Miami metro, relocated Feb 2026)
- Founded
- 2003
- Employees
- ~4,429 (Dec 2025)
- Total Pre-IPO Funding
- $2.46B across 18 rounds
- Market Cap (Jun 2026)
- ~$307B (Nasdaq: PLTR)
What is Palantir?
Palantir Technologies is a publicly traded AI and data analytics platform company that builds operating systems for government agencies and large enterprises, enabling them to integrate, analyze, and act on vast and disparate datasets. Founded in 2003 and listed on Nasdaq (PLTR), Palantir generated $4.475 billion in revenue in 2025 — up 56% year-over-year — and reported $870.5 million in net income in Q1 2026 alone, its most profitable quarter since going public.
Palantir's four core platforms — Gotham (defense and intelligence), Foundry (commercial enterprise), Apollo (deployment infrastructure), and AIP (AI Platform, launched April 2023) — power mission-critical decision-making for 1,007 customers (as of Q1 2026) that include the CIA, U.S. Army, NHS England, Airbus, Ferrari, and Morgan Stanley. The company crossed $1 billion in quarterly revenue in Q4 2025 ($1.41B, +70% YoY) and posted $1.633 billion in Q1 2026 revenue — an 85% year-over-year increase — raising its full-year 2026 revenue guidance to $7.65–$7.66 billion.
Palantir's AIP Bootcamp model — an intensive five-day deployment sprint run on the customer's own data that converts roughly 75% of prospects into signed contracts — has become a signature go-to-market mechanism. U.S. commercial revenue grew 137% year-over-year in Q4 2025 and 133% in Q1 2026, reflecting a historic inflection from government-only origins toward a massive enterprise AI land-and-expand motion. The company holds $8 billion in cash and short-term U.S. Treasuries, carries no debt, and achieved a Rule of 40 score of 145% in Q1 2026 — combining 85% revenue growth with a 60% adjusted operating margin.
Palantir went public via a direct NYSE listing in September 2020 and transferred to the Nasdaq Global Select Market in November 2024, in part to meet Nasdaq-100 eligibility criteria. It joined the S&P 500 in September 2024. As of June 2026, its market capitalization is approximately $307 billion, making it one of the most richly valued enterprise software companies on earth.
What does Palantir offer?
Palantir's product suite spans four core platforms covering defense intelligence, commercial enterprise data integration, continuous deployment infrastructure, and large language model–powered AI workflows, supplemented by hardware and specialized analytics products.
- Palantir Gotham· Defense & Intelligence
- Palantir Foundry· Commercial Enterprise
- Palantir AIP· AI Platform
- Palantir Apollo· Deployment Infrastructure
- TITAN· Defense Hardware
- MetaConstellation· Space & Satellite
- Metropolis· Financial Analytics
- MOSAIC Intelligence Platform· Intelligence
- AIP Bootcamp· Go-To-Market
- Forward Deployed Engineering· Services
How does Palantir make money?
Palantir generates revenue from software platform subscriptions and bundled professional services sold to government agencies and commercial enterprises on multi-year contracts, typically ranging from $1 million to $10 billion in total contract value. The company does not publish fixed per-seat pricing; all deals are individually negotiated.
Government contracts — DoD, intelligence agencies, federal law enforcement — typically run $10M–$795M+, while large commercial engagements (manufacturing, finance, healthcare) start around $1M and scale into nine figures. The U.S. Army's August 2025 Enterprise Service Agreement carries a potential $10 billion ceiling over 10 years, consolidating 75 prior Palantir contracts across 15 prime contracts and 60 related agreements. Professional services via Forward Deployed Engineers embedded at client sites are bundled into contracts and account for roughly 30–40% of first-year total spend.
The AIP Bootcamp — a five-day, no-cost proof-of-value sprint run on the customer's own data — is Palantir's primary conversion mechanism, with roughly 75% of attendees converting to paid contracts. Over 1,300 bootcamps had been completed by Q4 2024. This model compresses sales cycles from 12–18 months into days and drives a Net Dollar Retention consistently above 120%. In Q1 2026, Palantir closed 206 deals worth at least $1 million (72 at $5M+, 47 at $10M+) for total contract value of $2.41 billion in the quarter alone — up 61% year-over-year. Total remaining deal value reached $11.8 billion, up 98% YoY.
Revenue splits roughly 42% U.S. government ($687M in Q1 2026), 36% U.S. commercial ($595M), and 22% international in Q1 2026. U.S. commercial is the fastest-growing segment (133% YoY in Q1 2026) and is expected to surpass government revenue within 2–3 years at current trajectory. The company's adjusted operating margin reached 60% in Q1 2026, with free cash flow of $925 million — demonstrating significant operating leverage as Palantir scales its $6.5B+ annualized revenue run rate without proportionally growing headcount.
Who leads Palantir?
Palantir is led by its co-founders Peter Thiel (Chairman) and Alex Karp (CEO), alongside a long-tenured executive team that has been with the company for over a decade. The founding generation retains voting control through a three-class share structure.
- Alex KarpCEO & Co-Founder2003–presentStanford-trained philosopher (PhD in neoclassical social theory from Goethe University Frankfurt); known for plainspoken investor letters and Palantir's mission-first culture. Personally drove the AIP Bootcamp GTM strategy.
- Peter ThielChairman & Co-Founder2003–presentPayPal co-founder and early Facebook investor; provided Palantir's seed capital and shaped its government-first strategy via In-Q-Tel introductions. Retains outsized voting power through the multi-class share structure.
- Stephen CohenPresident, Secretary & Co-Founder2003–presentStanford CS alumnus who has served as President and Secretary since founding; oversees product strategy and corporate execution.
- Shyam SankarChief Technology Officer & EVP2006–presentCornell and Stanford (MS) engineer; architect of Palantir's ontology-driven data model and the Forward Deployed Engineer delivery model.
- David GlazerChief Financial Officer & Treasurer2013–presentJD from Emory and BA from Santa Clara; managed the 2020 direct listing and now oversees finance and treasury for a company doing $7B+ in annualized revenue.
- Ryan TaylorChief Revenue Officer & Chief Legal Officer2010–presentHarvard Law / Stanford Engineering; dual CRO/CLO role reflects Palantir's view that government contracts are as much legal instruments as sales wins.
How do you contact Palantir's leadership?
Palantir's verified email format is first_initial.last@palantir.com, used by approximately 76% of employees per RocketReach. Palantir does not publish personal executive emails; the addresses below follow the verified company pattern. Official department inboxes — investors@palantir.com and media@palantir.com — are confirmed in SEC filings and investor relations pages.
akarp@palantir.comHow much funding has Palantir raised?
Palantir raised approximately $2.46 billion in pre-IPO equity across 18 rounds from 2006 to 2020, then went public via a NYSE direct listing in September 2020 at a ~$22 billion market cap. As of June 2026, Palantir's market capitalization stands at approximately $307 billion on Nasdaq (PLTR).
Palantir's earliest institutional capital came from In-Q-Tel (~$2M in 2003–2004) and a $7.5M Series A led by Oakhouse Partners in July 2006. A $10.5M Series B followed in November 2006, then a $36.8M Series C in February 2008 at ~$400M valuation. Founders Fund led the $90M Series D in June 2010 (~$735M valuation) and the $50M Series E in May 2011 (~$1.7B), followed by a $68M Series F in October 2011 (~$2.5B). A $56M Series G closed in October 2012 before growth rounds accelerated dramatically.
A $197M Series in September 2013 pushed valuation to ~$9B; a $444M raise in September 2014 followed at ~$15B; and in July 2015 an $880M Series H (led by Morgan Stanley, Founders Fund, and Kortschak Investments) — then the largest U.S. private tech round of the year — pushed valuation to ~$20B. A $50M Series J closed in December 2014, and a final $550M pre-IPO round in June 2020 led by Sompo Holdings valued the company at ~$26B. Palantir went public on September 30, 2020 via a direct NYSE listing at $7.25 reference price (~$22B market cap) and transferred to Nasdaq on November 26, 2024.
With no debt, $8 billion in cash, and $7.65B in guided 2026 revenue, the market has repriced Palantir from a data analytics niche player to a structurally dominant AI infrastructure company — resulting in a ~$307B market cap as of June 2026.
How did Palantir get here?
From a post-9/11 intelligence startup seeded by the CIA to a $307 billion Nasdaq-listed AI operating system company, Palantir's 23-year arc tracks the evolution of data analytics from counterterrorism to enterprise AI.
- May 2003Founded in Palo AltoPeter Thiel, Alex Karp, Stephen Cohen, Joe Lonsdale, and Nathan Gettings incorporate Palantir, applying PayPal fraud-detection techniques to national security. In-Q-Tel invests ~$2M on behalf of the CIA, providing government distribution access in exchange for early product feedback.
- Feb 2008Gotham Launches at ~$400M ValuationPalantir Gotham — its flagship defense and intelligence platform — goes live after a $36.8M Series C. The platform is credited with supporting counterterrorism, counter-IED operations, and law enforcement fusion centers across U.S. agencies.
- Jul 2015$880M Series H at $20B ValuationLargest U.S. private tech round of 2015, co-led by Morgan Stanley, Founders Fund, and Kortschak Investments. Capital funds international expansion and Foundry's commercial rollout. Palantir is now valued higher than pre-IPO Spotify.
- Sep 30, 2020NYSE Direct Listing (PLTR) — ~$22B Market CapPalantir bypasses a traditional IPO and goes public via direct listing at a $7.25 reference price. The company has never raised post-IPO equity; cash from operations has funded all growth since.
- Apr 2023AIP Launches; First GAAP ProfitPalantir launches the Artificial Intelligence Platform (AIP), integrating LLMs from OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google within enterprise security guardrails. The same quarter, the company posts its first GAAP net income ($31M) after 20 years of losses.
- Sep 23, 2024S&P 500 Inclusion; Nasdaq TransferPalantir joins the S&P 500, replacing AAL. Stock surges 14% on announcement. In November 2024, Palantir transfers to Nasdaq (effective Nov 26, 2024), positioning for Nasdaq-100 inclusion and higher institutional visibility.
- Aug 2025$10B U.S. Army Enterprise AgreementThe U.S. Army awards Palantir a $10 billion, 10-year Enterprise Service Agreement consolidating 75 prior contracts. The deal covers Gotham and Apollo platforms and is the largest single contract in Palantir's history.
- Q1 2026$1.633B Quarterly Revenue; Rule of 40 at 145%Palantir reports 85% YoY revenue growth to $1.633B, 60% adjusted operating margins, $2.41B TCV closed, 1,007 customers (+31% YoY), $11.8B remaining deal value (+98% YoY), and raises full-year 2026 guidance to $7.65–7.66B.
Who are Palantir's competitors?
Palantir competes across government analytics, commercial data platforms, and enterprise AI deployment — facing different rivals in each segment.
- DatabricksStrongest cloud-native alternative — lakehouse architecture (Unity Catalog + Mosaic AI) challenges Palantir Foundry in enterprise data and ML, with 40%+ revenue growth and $3B+ ARR.
- SnowflakeCloud data warehousing leader competing for Foundry's data integration and sharing use cases; more accessible and lower cost but less opinionated on end-to-end AI workflows.
- MicrosoftCompetes via Azure Synapse, Microsoft Fabric, and Azure OpenAI Service; Azure Government and tight M365/Dynamics integration challenge Palantir in federal accounts at scale.
- IBMLegacy enterprise AI brand with comparable government credentials; recently repositioned around watsonx for generative AI but lacks Palantir's ontology layer and Forward Deployed Engineer model.
- AlteryxSelf-service analytics targeting the analyst population that Foundry Code Workbook also targets; lower price point and narrower scope, lacking Palantir's government-grade security posture.
- Booz Allen HamiltonCompeting for the same defense and intelligence AI budgets via managed services rather than software; often resells or integrates competing platforms alongside its own analytics tools.
Palantir — frequently asked questions
