Palantir

  Created from a group of analyst within Paypal, the software could view each transaction as a part of a pattern, rather than as just a single database entry. (Rainer 35) The software essentially combs through Big Data and by AI finds patterns, based on the given algorithm.  

Crunchbase shows the Palantir Technologies worth at $2.01 billion dollars. 

The company was founded in 2004, employees 1k-5k, and since its inception has doubled in size every year. (Crunchbase, 2017) However the company recently lost its contract with Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). 

Sources state partly due to Palantir’s inability to keep quite of its relation and works with the CIA. Sources also state it has friction in the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) relation as well.  

"As many of you know, the SSDA's recalcitrant," Karp, using a Palantir codename for the CIA, said in the August 2015 meeting. "And we've walked away, or they walked away from us, at the NSA. Either way, I'm happy about that." (Alden, 2017 Apr 21) 

What is worrisome to me, is Palantir is now using its technology for profit. Think about that for a minute. It originally was for military use, fine-tuning its software, but now using that same resource for profit.  

After catering exclusively to defense, law enforcement and intelligence agencies in its early years, Palantir doubled its commercial business between 2014 and 2015, a person close to the company said, and now at least 60 percent of its work is with for-profit companies. The startup reportedly has worked with Hershey and Coca-Cola.(D’Souza, 2017 May 3) 

References:  

Rainer, R. K., Brad Prince, Casey Cegielski. Introduction to Information Systems, 5th Edition. Wiley, 11/2013. VitalBook file.   Crunchbase. (2017). 

Palantir Technololgies. Retrieved from https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/palantir-technologies#/entity 

William Alden. (2017 Apr 21). Palantir’s relationship with America’s spies has been worse than you’d think. Retrieved from https://www.cnbc.com/2017/04/21/buzzfeed-palantir-loses-relationship-with-nsa-ceo-karp-bashes-trump.html 

Karen D’Souza. (2017 May 3). So who is Palantir?. Retrieved from http://www.mercurynews.com/2017/05/03/so-who-is-tech-giant-palantir/