Latest news with #Palantir
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Analyst Says Palantir Technologies (PLTR) a ‘Huge' Beneficiary of Trump's Tax Bill
PLTR is one of the . Wedbush's Dan Ives recently said during a program on CNBC that Palantir Technologies Inc (NASDAQ:PLTR) will be a key beneficiary of President Donald Trump's 'big, beautiful' tax bill. "I think front and center is massive. I think Palantir is going to be a huge beneficiary." Palantir shares are up over 400% one the past one year, but many analysts believe the stock has more room to run. The US government's Warp Speed for Warships initiative is counted as a new catalyst for the stock. The project uses Palantir's AI-powered Foundry platform to digitally transform US naval shipbuilding. In Q1 alone, the company won close to 140 deals worth over $1 million each, including 31 deals above $10 million. Palantir is also positioned to benefit from its partnership with Accenture Federal Services (AFS) to co-develop AI solutions for federal agencies. Photo by Kaur Kristjan on Unsplash Jackson Peak Capital stated the following regarding Palantir Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ:PLTR) in its Q1 2025 investor letter: 'Palantir Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ:PLTR) was a contributor as a long event-driven trade. We held PLTR into and through its Q4 earnings. The thesis was that it would continue its beat and raise cadence and have investors chasing the right tail as management lays out what's possible under the new administration in DC, announcing new contract wins. It also benefitted from market structure dynamics with institutions underweight and PLTR joining the Nasdaq 100 index in December.' While we acknowledge the potential of PLTR as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that some AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and have limited downside risk. If you are looking for an extremely cheap AI stock that is also a major beneficiary of Trump tariffs and onshoring, see our free report on the . READ NEXT: 30 Stocks That Should Double in 3 Years and 11 Hidden AI Stocks to Buy Right Now. Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.
USA Today
2 hours ago
- Business
- USA Today
Tech execs join the Army. Critics say it's an ethical minefield
The Army commissioned four executives from tech companies, including Palantir, Meta and OpenAI, as reserve officers at the rank of lieutenant colonel. WASHINGTON − When the Army announced it would commission four executives from some of Silicon Valley's top tech giants as lieutenant colonels in the reserves, critics said they could use their insider positions to win lucrative military contracts for their employers. Now, the Army and one of the executives say, tech isn't even part of the assignment. "What I'll be working on has actually not that much to do directly with technology or AI," Shyam Sankar, chief technology officer at data analysis giant Palantir, told USA TODAY. Sankar said he will focus on recruitment and "talent." Palantir has hundreds of millions of dollars in Pentagon tech contracts. More: Big Tech takes on immigration with new migrant tracking software for ICE "I have to work on things where I don't have a conflict, as determined by lawyers," Sankar said on July 7. "This was just a safe space for me.' The other three tech execs will work on subjects including 'autonomy,' 'human performance' and the 'organizational organic industrial base,' according to Maj. Matthew Visser, an Army spokesperson. 'Getting them on the inside' The Army says the four executives – Sankar of Palantir, Andrew Bosworth of Meta, Kevin Weil of OpenAI and Bob McGrew of AI startup Thinking Machines Lab – will be well positioned as officers in the Army Reserves to help address large-scale issues. More: OpenAI secures $200 million Pentagon contract to develop technology for national security Servicemembers on reserve duty join the military part-time – most hold other jobs and serve on duty one weekend per month and two full weeks per year. But the Army has implied the four were brought in last month specifically to lend tech expertise. "They've got this sixth sense," Steve Warren, an Army spokesperson, said of the four newly minted lieutenant colonels. 'These guys will help us think about how we're using things like AI and bleeding edge technologies in a different way.' Warren said they will provide 'advice' and 'insights' as the Army undergoes a top-to-bottom overhaul called the 'Army transformation initiative.' Kickstarted by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth in May, the initiative will see the Army cut back on 'outdated equipment,' like some ground vehicles, and prioritize high-tech gadgets like drones and AI – the four executives' area of expertise. A memo from Hegseth directs the Army to "enable AI-driven command and control" throughout its headquarters by 2027 and field drones in every division by 2026. Critics say bringing in the tech executives is an ethical minefield. Combined, the executives' companies hold more than a billion dollars in military contracts. Palantir, which has drawn scrutiny over reports that it's compiling Americans' personal data and surveiling possible targets of immigration enforcement, was awarded a $795 million contract by the Army in May. The company's Pentagon contracts are primarily to design AI systems that crunch large amounts of data to come up with potential strike targets. Meta announced the same month it had been tapped to build virtual reality headsets for Army soldiers, and OpenAI won a $200 million contract to develop artificial intelligence for the Army in June. Only Thinking Machines Lab has no Army contracts; McGrew formerly worked stints at both OpenAI and Palantir, according to his LinkedIn profile. "Clearly, they have blatant conflicts of interest," said Dru Brenner-Beck, a retired lieutenant colonel and Army lawyer who served as deputy general counsel for the Army inspector general. "I would certainly have questions if I was one of the competitors of these particular organizations,' Brenner-Beck said. Sankar said he first pitched his desire to join up around a year and a half ago and personally recruited the three others to the effort. He spoke with multiple services but landed on the Army, he said, for its 'state of mind.' The motive: sheer patriotism and desire to help the military succeed, he said. More: How much does the government know about you? Likely more than ever. "They're patriots; they see what's happening to the country," Sankar said of his tech brothers-in-arms. Of critics, he said, "It's amazing how cynical we've become on the eve of the 250th anniversary (of the United States).' Outside experts brought into the military to advise are so common that they have their own title within the Pentagon – "highly qualified experts." Commissioning them directly into a military role – and at the rank of lieutenant colonel, which normally takes around 17 years to achieve – is not. "Part of this is getting them on the inside," Warren said of the decision to give the four Army ranks. "We want them invested." Hegseth and China The Army has said the four's corporate ties would be no more problematic than those of other reserve officers, some of whom work jobs at defense contractors outside of their military service. Like other reservists, the tech executives were required to fill out forms declaring potential conflicts of interest. Those forms are reviewed by military lawyers, who can order servicemembers to divest from stocks or investments that might touch on their Army service. The four will arrive at Fort Benning in Georgia by the end of July for their initial training, where they'll be taught "which hand to salute with," and other fundamentals of being an officer, Warren said. They are subject to the same physical fitness standards and will take the tests required of any other reserve officer, according to Maj. Visser. Commissioning businesspeople into the Army is also not without precedent. During World War II, as the U.S. economy shifted into high gear to support the war effort, some industry leaders were commissioned directly into the military, like General Motors President William Knudsen, who the Army commissioned at the much higher rank of lieutenant general in 1942. Sankar has argued that China poses a threat comparable or greater than what the U.S. faced during World War II and the Cold War, a view endorsed by Hegseth and some in his inner circle. That belief also hangs in the background of the Army Transformation Initiative, which is aimed at "deterring China," according to Hegseth. Skeptics say it's the tail wagging the dog. The shift, as evidenced by the new tech officers, is 'not as driven by the needs of the military as it is by the tremendous AI hype that's been produced by those very companies' to which they belong, said Shannon French, the Inamori Professor in Ethics at Case Western Reserve University who taught military ethics for 11 years at the U.S. Naval Academy. The growing overlap between weapons manufacturers and companies with vast surveillance capacity has sparked broader public concern, along with the Trump administration's moves to dismantle AI regulations and President Donald Trump's chummy relationships with some of Silicon Valley's wealthiest executives − most notably Elon Musk, who led Trump's efforts to slash the federal government, but has since explosively broken with the administration.
Business Insider
6 hours ago
- Business
- Business Insider
An OpenAI exec said the company is using a new engineering role to get big customers' projects going fast
OpenAI is scaling up its global presence with a boots-on-the-ground strategy. OpenAI's international managing director, Oliver Jay, said on Wednesday at the Fortune Brainstorm AI 2025 conference in Singapore that the company has rolled out a new engineering role — the forward-deployed engineer — to help clients with their AI projects. "This new model for us, hiring our own engineers to help deploy for our largest projects, is something that we see as a really specific way to advance the acceleration of advanced AI into scale production cases," Jay said. The company has worked with a few "pilot customers" to test this new role, he added. "We like to deploy and learn from the field, and through that process, we learned a lot of techniques," Jay said. The term "forward-deployed engineer" was popularized by Palantir, the government-focused software giant. It refers to engineers who embed with clients to fine-tune the product on-site. Jay said the role was born out of a key bottleneck OpenAI noticed over the past year: Clients need to bridge the gap from trial to production. AI doesn't work like cloud software, which is straightforward to test and deploy, Jay said. "As you scale, you need advanced techniques to set guardrails, to evaluate the accuracy and the models," he added. "This is where we solve the latest gap between companies." Jay's comments come as OpenAI deepens its footprint in Asia, with offices in Singapore, Tokyo, and Seoul. The company's chief strategy officer, Jason Kwon, wrote in an X post in May that growth in ChatGPT's user base in South Korea has been "off the charts." OpenAI did not respond to a request for comment from Business Insider. OpenAI hiring forward-deployed engineers Earlier this year, OpenAI's global head of forward-deployed engineering, Colin Jarvis, announced in a LinkedIn post that he would be leading the company's new forward-deployed engineering function. "Our focus is getting our customers to production, whether it's through a zero-to-one novel application of our tech or helping you to scale proven cases," he wrote. In a LinkedIn post last month, Jarvis said OpenAI is hiring engineering managers to "lead teams tackling the hardest real-world problems with AI," with roles available in San Francisco, New York, Dublin, London, Paris, and Munich. A current job listing for a forward-deployed engineer based in New York lists compensation between $220,000 and $280,000, plus equity. OpenAI also posted a similar role in Singapore four months ago, signaling expansion of the team into Asia. The forward-deployed software engineer model has become a launchpad for startup founders — and a powerful way to land enterprise deals. A former forward-deployed software engineer at Palantir told Business Insider the role fast-tracked the skills she needed to learn to run a startup successfully. "It's definitely founder preparation bootcamp," she said. "As a founder, you have to talk to investors, land partnerships, and be outward-facing, but you also have to put your head down, build a product, code, and be inward-facing. It's the same dynamic with being a Forward Deployed Engineer." On an episode of the "Y Combinator" podcast published last month, YC partner Diana Hu said she and her team have seen founders close "six, seven seven-figure deals" with large enterprises by being forward-deployed engineers. YC's CEO, Garry Tan, also said on the podcast that this model gives AI startups a chance to outmaneuver giants like Salesforce, Oracle, and Booz Allen.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
PLTR Stock Warning: This Analyst Says Palantir Is ‘Too Crowded.' Here's Why.
Palantir (PLTR) shares are falling in morning trading Tuesday after a senior JPMorgan strategist issued a bearish note on the data analytics firm. According to Dubravko Lakos-Bujas, the Denver-headquartered firm runs the risk of steep decline in the second half of 2025 as it's a high-beta, momentum-driven name that's super 'overcrowded' at writing. More News from Barchart Opendoor Stock Is Surging Higher in a Frenzied Retail Rally. How Should You Play OPEN Shares Here? This Penny Stock Wants to Become the MicroStrategy of Dogecoin Robinhood Stock Stumbles as S&P 500 Inclusion Is Once Again Off the Table for HOOD Tired of missing midday reversals? The FREE Barchart Brief newsletter keeps you in the know. Sign up now! Palantir stock has been in a sharp uptrend over the past three months and is currently up more than 100% versus its April low. What Overcrowding Means for Palantir Stock In his research note, Lakos-Bujas said positioning in PLTR shares has soared from 25th percentile to the 100th percentile within three months only, the fastest increase in about 30 years. This 'extreme crowding' suggests nearly everyone who wants to own the stock already does. In such cases, even minor negative news can trigger a sharp selloff, as there's little fresh buying to support prices. Combined with sky-high valuation (well over 400x forward earnings), Palantir stock looks highly vulnerable to momentum reversal and profit-taking at current levels. In short, shares of the AI-enabled software giant are priced for perfection, and perfection rarely lasts. PLTR Shares Are Disconnected From Fundamentals Financially, the data analytics company is doing rather well, with estimates for per-share earnings pegged at $0.08 a share for the current quarter, indicating well over 150% growth on a year-over-year basis. Still, the JPMorgan strategist sees PLTR stock's valuation as disconnected from fundamentals as it has gone a bit too far. According to him, investors should consider pulling out of Palantir shares following its meteoric run as 'it's not supported by bust-to-boom recovery in business cycle/fundamentals or significant easing in monetary/fiscal policies.' Therefore, the AI stock will likely fail at sustaining its outperformance over multiple quarters, he concluded. Wall Street Recommends Caution in Buying Palantir Other Wall Street analysts, much like Dubravko Lakos-Bujas, recommend caution in buying PLTR shares at current levels. According to Barchart, the consensus rating on Palantir stock currently sits at 'Hold' only with the mean target of about $107 indicating potential downside of as much as 30% from here. On the date of publication, Wajeeh Khan did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. This article was originally published on Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Palantir (PLTR) Wins Key U.S. Army AI Contract in Push for Défense Growth
Palantir Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ:PLTR) is one of the AI Stocks Analysts Are Tracking Closely. On July 21, William Blair analyst Louie DiPalma reiterated a 'Market Perform' rating on the stock. The rating affirmation follows the U.S. Army having awarded a $100 million contract to the Anduril-Palantir team for the delivery of a Next-Generation Command and Control (NGC2) platform prototype. The 11-month contract will require the involved companies to participate in one of the highest priority projects of the US Army. William Blaire has estimated that $30 million of the total contract value will go to Palantir. It also noted that the contract has the potential to increase to more than $150 million in annual recurring revenue in the next three years. Palantir (PLTR) Wins Key U.S. Army AI Contract in Push for Défense Growth A cybersecurity expert monitoring the security of the company's assets, emphasizing the importance of data protection. The firm's contract tracker reveals that Palantir was awarded $135 million in annual recurring revenue across nine different government contracts for the second quarter. Meanwhile, the NGC2 contract will be part of third-quarter bookings. Palantir Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ:PLTR) is a leading provider of artificial intelligence systems. While we acknowledge the potential of PLTR as an investment, we believe certain AI stocks offer greater upside potential and carry less downside risk. If you're looking for an extremely undervalued AI stock that also stands to benefit significantly from Trump-era tariffs and the onshoring trend, see our free report on the best short-term AI stock. READ NEXT: 10 AI Stocks Gaining Attention on Wall Street and 10 AI Stocks Investors Are Watching Closely. Disclosure: None.
