European unions, civil groups urge governments to cut ties with Palantir

A coalition of European trade unions and civil society organizations is urging governments and institutions across Europe to cut ties with Palantir, the US AI-driven data analytics company.

According to Euractiv, a media outlet specializing in EU affairs, unions and civil society groups from 30 European countries issued an open letter Monday (local time) arguing that Palantir has no place in a democratic Europe and calling on European governments and institutions to terminate all existing contracts with the firm.

The groups cited Palantir's provision of technology to US immigration authorities conducting aggressive crackdowns on migrants, as well as CEO Alex Karp's vocal support for Israel, which faces genocide charges before the International Court of Justice over its actions against Palestinians. They also said Europe's heavy reliance on a single American company poses a threat to European sovereignty.

"Setting aside President Donald Trump's demonstrated willingness to weaponize US economic and trade relationships, such dependence is unwise given the close ties between Palantir and his nationalist administration," the letter said. The signatories called on governments to terminate all current contracts with Palantir, ban future agreements and develop alternative solutions.

In addition, they urged investors such as pension funds to divest their Palantir shares.

Palantir has built relationships with European governments over the past several years. French intelligence agencies signed a contract with the company following the 2015 Paris attacks, and other European governments turned to Palantir's specialized health care services during the COVID-19 pandemic. NATO approved the use of Palantir's military software for its own operations this summer.

Since Donald Trump's return to power, tensions between Europe and the United States have fueled growing controversy over government contracts with Palantir. Concerns have mounted over the close ties between Palantir co-founder Peter Thiel and figures in the Trump administration, as well as unease about entrusting broad European data to a US platform. Against that backdrop, European companies are intensifying their push to position themselves as alternatives to Palantir — among them France's Chapsvision, Britain's Quantexa, and Ireland's Siren and Octostar.