Palantir Technologies: Once Secretive Company Explains What It Is Not

November 17, 2020

I enjoy once-secretive companies explaining what they are not. A good example of this type of re-formation is “Palantir Is Not a Data Company (Palantir Explained, #1).” The headline makes it clear to me that there will be additional “we are not” essays coming down the intelware pike. The first installment of what a stealth company communicated incorrectly it seems is:

Palantir is not a data company and not a data aggregator.

The write up wants to differentiate from a company like Datminr or Oracle BlueKai and similar firms. These outfits suck up information and then sell access to those data.

Palantir Technologies is not in that “data” business. The company processes the data its clients have, license, or to which the clients link in an appropriate manner.

The essay makes clear that Palantir is a “software company.” That’s true. Much of the software is open source or crafted to perform specific functions which customers pay Palantir to effectuate. (There are partners and integrators who perform other work for Palantir licensees. Most of these companies keep a low profile and do not advertise their Palantir goodness.

Several observations:

  1. Palantir is a hybrid outfit; that is, it combines open source software, custom code, and consulting to generate revenue
  2. Partners and integrators contribute expertise and software shims to allow a licensee obtain a desire output from the Palantir system
  3. Much of Palantir “runs” on cloud services; for example, Amazon Web Services.

Now that Palantir is a publicly traded company, the once stealthy firm which operated as a start up for more than a decade has to demonstrate that it is avoiding some of the public relations pitfalls for intelware and policeware vendors in the public eye.

How difficult is this task? Quite challenging in my opinion.

I am looking forward to the second installment of explaining Palantir.

Stephen E Arnold, November 17, 2020

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