Tech Company Palantir Faces Employee Backlash Over ICE Ties

Palantir, a big tech company, is under fire from its own workers. They're questioning the company's work with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) after a recent incident. A nurse named Alex Pretti was shot and killed by federal agents. This sparked a heated debate inside Palantir. Workers took to Slack, the company's messaging platform, to express their concerns. They wanted to know more about Palantir's involvement with ICE. Some even questioned if the company should be working with the agency at all. The discussion was heated, with many employees asking for more transparency. Palantir's leadership tried to calm the situation. They shared an internal document explaining their work with ICE. The document said Palantir's technology helps ICE make better decisions. It also mentioned a $30 million contract for a system called ImmigrationOS. This system gives ICE "near real-time visibility" into people who are self-deporting.But not everyone was convinced. Some workers asked if ICE could use Palantir's technology in ways that go beyond the company's contracts. The response was clear: Palantir doesn't control how ICE uses its platform. This raised more questions about the ethical implications of their work. The debate also touched on reports of U. S. citizens being wrongly targeted by ICE. Palantir acknowledged these reports but argued that their customers at ICE are committed to avoiding such incidents. However, this didn't satisfy all the employees. Meanwhile, a video shared by an independent journalist added fuel to the fire. The video showed an ICE agent scanning a legal observer's car. The agent mentioned a "nice little database" and labeled the observer as a "domestic terrorist. " This raised concerns about Palantir's role in such databases. Palantir's work with the federal government has been growing. They've secured over $900 million in federal contracts. But the recent backlash shows that not all employees are comfortable with this growth, especially when it involves agencies like ICE.