Palantir CEO Alex Karp Says Don't Become 'A Product Of An Ideology' As He Urges Silicon Valley To 'Fight Back' With Open Debate On AI And Defense

Palantir Technologies Inc.‘s PLTR CEO Alex Karp told a heckler on Wednesday at the Hill & Valley Forum that Silicon Valley must defend its right to debate and "not become a product of an ideology," arguing that true strength comes from open discourse.

What Happened: "If your argument is that strong, why will you not let the other side talk?" he asked, saying, “The obvious solution to war is to have the West have the strongest, most precise, deadly weapons possible… so that we can minimize unnecessary innocent deaths.”

Karp pointed to his new book, The Technological Republic, co-authored with Nicholas Zamiska, which urges a tighter alliance between government and tech to secure Western liberal democracy and maintain a competitive edge over rival powers. He criticized protesters for shutting down debate, warning that those "unwittingly part of an evil force" allow themselves to be weaponized by extremist causes. Karp called on his peers to "fight back" by hosting robust discussions on AI governance, export controls, and the ethics of lethal autonomy.

Karp warned that ceding control of advanced AI to adversaries risks a future where free expression is crushed under "hierarchical disparity," making the West's commitment to open debate its greatest strategic asset.

Why It Matters: Karp’s comments come days after Palantir's expanding government presence. The company recently partnered with Alphabet Inc.'s GOOG GOOGL Google Public Sector to enable government agencies to access software applications on Google Cloud's accredited infrastructure with enhanced security compliance.

Palantir CTO Shyam Sankar also recently said President Trump's April executive orders — which make commercial off-the-shelf technology the default for federal procurement and empower agencies to use rapid acquisition tools like Other Transaction Authority — could save billions and broaden contracts to innovative firms.

Price Action: PLTR closed 2.03% higher at $118.44 on Wednesday, despite broader market weakness. The relative strength was likely driven by continued momentum following a wave of new defense deals and investor interest ahead of its upcoming earnings report on May 5.

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