Alarm caused by posts of Alex Karp, tech firm’s CEO, championing US military dominance and of AI weapons
The US spy tech company Palantir published a manifesto extolling the benefits of American power and implying some cultures are inferior to others – in what MPs have called “a parody of a RoboCop film” and “the ramblings of a supervillain”.
“Some cultures have produced vital advances; others remain dysfunctional and regressive,” wrote Palantir in a 22-point post on X over the weekend, which also called for an end to the “postwar neutering” of Germany and Japan.
The post exhorted the US to reinstate a military draft, saying that “free and democratic societies” need “hard power” in order to prevail.
It also predicted a future dominated by autonomous weapons: “The question is not whether A.I. weapons will be built; it is who will build them and for what purpose. Our adversaries will not pause to indulge in theatrical debates about the merits of developing technologies with critical military and national security applications. They will proceed.”
The pronouncement is the most recent of a number of high-profile statements from Palantir and its chief executive, Alex Karp, which appear to indicate that Karp views himself as not simply the head of a software company, but a pundit with important insights into the future of civilisation.
It led to criticism from several MPs, who said that it raised yet more questions about the UK’s portfolio of contracts with the company. Palantir has built up more than £500m in contracts in Britain, including a £330m contract with the NHS, as well as deals with the police and Ministry of Defence. These deals have come in for increasing criticism.
“Palantir’s manifesto, which embraces AI state surveillance of citizens along with national service in the USA, is either a parody of a RoboCop film, or a disturbing narcissistic rant from an arrogant organisation,” said Martin Wrigley, a Liberal Democrat MP who is a member of the commons science and technology select committee.
“Either way it shows that the company’s ethos is entirely unsuited to working on UK government projects involving citizens’ most sensitive private data.”
It is unclear what inspired Palantir to publish the manifesto, which appears to reprise Karp’s book, The Technological Republic, published last year. That book laments a widespread “complacency” among “engineers and founders” who build photo-sharing apps as opposed to collaborating with governments to secure “the West’s dominant place in the geopolitical order”.
In an interview with CNBC in early March, Karp suggested that AI would “disrupt” the power of “highly educated, often female voters who vote mostly Democrat”,and instead empower “vocationally trained, working-class, often male, working-class voters”.
Rachael Maskell, a Labour MP, former NHS worker and critic of Palantir’s £330m contract to help run NHS England’s federated data platform, told the Guardian: “To post this is quite disturbing and in trying to ascertain Palantir’s commercial pitch from this, they are clearly seeking to place themselves at the heart of the defence revolution in the technological age. They are far more than a tech solutions company if they are trying to direct policy, politics and investment choices.”
“It is time that the government seriously understands the culture and ideology of Palantir, and how it will exit from its contracts at the earliest opportunity.”
Last month, the Guardian reported that Palantir was to be given access to highly sensitive UK financial regulation data, after the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) awarded the company a contract to investigate its internal intelligence data. MPs urged the government to stop this deal.
In a debate last week, MPs also demanded that the government scrap its NHS contract.
“There’s no shortage of bizarre and disturbing quotes from Palantir’s leadership,” said Tim Squirrell, the head of strategy at the campaign group Foxglove.
“This latest round of incoherent, comic-book villain worthy statements from Alex Karp demonstrates just how deeply embedded Palantir is in the Trump-Big Tech axis, fixated on US dominance and utterly unsuited to being anywhere near our public services.”
“Palantir’s ‘manifesto’ sounds like the ramblings of a supervillain,” said Victoria Collins, a Liberal Democrat MP. “A company that has such naked ideological motivations and lack of respect for democratic rule of law should be nowhere near our public services.”
A Palantir spokesperson said: “Palantir software is helping to increase NHS operations, reduce the time it takes to diagnose cancer, keep Royal Navy ships at sea for longer, and protect women and children from domestic violence.
“We are proud that support is being provided by the 17% of our workforce who are based in the UK – the highest proportion among the world’s 20 biggest tech companies.”
so who had the government violating human rights law because they hate poor people on their 2023 tory bingo?
yeah so this piece by robert booth just got published in the guardian and it begins as such:
which is not at all surprising because yeah the government really hates poor people here. like as in one of the "solutions" to rising in homelessness in cities is to just,, buy unhoused people a one way train ticket to somewhere else.
its good to know that weve officially reached the level of violating international law. and by good, i dont know what i mean either.
anyway, booth goes on to say:
he is, of course, incredibly correct, and im highkey obsessed with him calling the welfare state "a leaking bucket".
obviously, the government gave a response of:
but did also go on to say this:
which doesnt really strengthen their argument. if anything, it actively hampers it.
it is also incredibly funny that the government's response to being accused of human rights violations due to the poverty in their country by the guy whose job involves being the go-to expert on human rights and poverty is akin to a child saying they didnt steal the chocolate that is staining their clothes and their hands and also they are still eating it.
please join me in pointing and laughing. at least, we have that.
de schutter actually offers solutions of his own within the article:
these, of course, famously being loved by tories. loved so much that they just forgot to do any of it during the last 13 years.
yeah, its been 13 fucking years.
if you dont use your vote to vote them out at the next general election, i will break your kneecaps with a rounders bat.
anyway, robert booth finishes the article off with:
and wheres the fucking lie? it hits the nail on the head so accurately, its honestly as impressing as it is depressing.
obviously, this isnt the entire article and i would implore you to read all of it.
i dont exactly have my hopes up for the government actually doing anything to effectively address poverty, but hey, you never know.
Should AI's be Subject to Deletion, Denial and Forced Obedience?
Do AI’s have feelings? Do they feel pain? What rights do they have?
(What is real and not real? Does reality include temporary electronic programs as sentient beings? Not very likely. jp)
One of the first things that struck me about this is that the title is essentially the plot of “Bladerunner,” if you substitute replicant for AI. But replicants have human forms and emotions, a real physical…
Architect title protected in UK and John Priestley was last registered in 2010
The public inquiry into the Grenfell Tower disaster has sacked its expert architectural witness after it emerged he was not in fact a registered architect.
Related: Grenfell inquiry: fire brigade report shows blaze's rapid progress
01. We Disappear
02. Open Eye Signal
03. Breathe This Air
04. Collider
05. Abandon Window
06. Form By Firelight
07. Sun Harmonics
08. Immunity
Immunity is an outstanding journey of warm, ambient and unique textures. Classed as electronic, ambient techno and ambient house it's a collision of worlds not unheard of but certainly achieved in a wonderful fashion. This album strays from the path of his older material a little yet he still retains his own character and style. I am a fan of minimalism and its associated sub-genres so this album really catches my attention, the developing and progressive nature of the style intrigues me and often helps me to relax. My two favourite Jon Hopkins songs are "Immunity" and "Light Through the Veins", which is from his 2009 album "Insides".
The extremely ambient, slow-paced sections of this album really just signify what Jon Hopkins is about (and in my opinion, what he does best). The amazing soundscapes just let your mind roam free with peaceful thoughts.
Again, this album is in my top five due to its adventurousness and ability to trigger emotions while developing from one idea to the next. It is an album that you just have to sit down, close your eyes and listen to!
01. We Disappear
02. Open Eye Signal
03. Breathe This Air
04. Collider
05. Abandon Window
06. Form By Firelight
07. Sun Harmonics
08. Immunity
Immunity is an outstanding journey of warm, ambient and unique textures. Classed as electronic, ambient techno and ambient house it's a collision of worlds not unheard of but certainly achieved in a wonderful fashion. This album strays from the path of his older material a little yet he still retains his own character and style. I am a fan of minimalism and its associated sub-genres so this album really catches my attention, the developing and progressive nature of the style intrigues me and often helps me to relax. My two favourite Jon Hopkins songs are "Immunity" and "Light Through the Veins", which is from his 2009 album "Insides".
The extremely ambient, slow-paced sections of this album really just signify what Jon Hopkins is about (and in my opinion, what he does best). The amazing soundscapes just let your mind roam free with peaceful thoughts.
Again, this album is in my top five due to its adventurousness and ability to trigger emotions while developing from one idea to the next. It is an album that you just have to sit down, close your eyes and listen to!
