Karp: U.S., China only AI players, bar "minor exception in Israel"

Karp's remarks, posted by Palantir on October 23, fit a pattern of treating Israel as a special case. The company announced a strategic partnership with Israel's Ministry of Defense in January 2024 to supply technology for the country's war effort, following a visit by Palantir executives and a board meeting in Tel Aviv; terms were not disclosed. Karp has also acknowledged the company's position has cost it employees, telling CNBC in March 2024 that Palantir lost staff over its stance on Israel, while describing Israel at the time as "not a commercially relevant part of our business." In the same conversation, he said Palantir operates under "serious security constraints" because of its role in Ukraine and in "certain parts of Israel." Beyond geopolitics, Karp argued the greatest threat to American AI leadership could come from domestic politics, predicting inequality could fuel a populist push for a wealth tax—a policy he called "crazy" and said would "shut off innovation" and "kill the startups." He also criticized corporate AI spending, saying customers are angry about paying for tokens that "create no value," and pitched "sovereign" AI as Palantir's answer.