MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Palantir manifesto draws global criticism over 'technofascist' and militarist vision of the West

The publication has been described as “technofascism,” and as “technofeudalism”

A 22-point manifesto published by Palantir Technologies on social media platform X has triggered a wave of international criticism over its ultranationalist and militarist tone, at a moment when the US data analytics firm for military and intelligence use has consolidated its position as one of the Pentagon's leading contractors. The document, posted on April 19, has accumulated more than 32 million views and condenses the thesis of the book The Technological Republic, written by the company's chief executive Alex Karp and head of corporate affairs Nicholas Zamiska.

The manifesto argues that Silicon Valley “owes a moral debt” to the United States and posits that “the ability of free and democratic societies to prevail requires something more than moral appeal: it requires hard power, and hard power in this century will be built on software.” Among its 22 points, it advocates the reinstatement of compulsory military service, claims that “the atomic age is ending” and that “a new era of deterrence built on AI is about to begin,” and calls for the end of the postwar “neutering” of Germany and Japan. The text also criticizes what it calls “the shallow temptation of a vacant and hollow pluralism,” asserting that “some cultures have produced vital advances; others remain dysfunctional and regressive.”

The publication has been described as “technofascism” by philosopher Mark Coeckelbergh, professor at the University of Vienna, and as “technofeudalism” by former Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis, who wrote on X that “if evil could tweet, this would be the content.” Investigative journalist Eliot Higgins, founder of Bellingcat, warned that the document's positions “aren't philosophy floating in space, they're the public ideology of a company whose revenue depends on the politics it's advocating.” George Washington University professor Dave Karpf said Palantir's chief executive “is like a James Bond villain, but worse dressed.”

Palantir, founded in 2003 with early backing from In-Q-Tel — the CIA's venture capital arm — holds multibillion-dollar contracts with the US Department of Defense, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and American intelligence agencies. Its Maven system, partially developed using artificial intelligence technology from Anthropic, is used to identify military targets in the war against Iran. The company also provides services to the Israeli military in the Palestinian territories. The stock trades at a price-to-earnings ratio above 230, fell 7.5% on Thursday, and has lost 21.5% over the past six months despite the Middle East conflict.

The release coincides with the recent visit to Buenos Aires by Palantir co-founder Peter Thiel, who met on April 23 with Argentine President Javier Milei in an agenda that included conversations with Deregulation Minister Federico Sturzenegger on artificial intelligence and energy. To date, neither side has confirmed any service agreement between Palantir and the Argentine government.