Alex Karp knows people talk behind his back. But he claims that his company’s recent success is enough to sway his critics.
"Instead of going into every meeting saying, 'Oh, yes, Palantir is great, but their fearless leader is batshit crazy, and he might go off to his commune in New Hampshire,' whatever thing we're saying, it's now like, yes, the products are best, and we have great products," Karp said in an earnings call Monday.
Beating Wall Street’s expectations, Palantir’s revenue increased by 30% in just one year. The morning after third-quarter earnings were released, shares rose by over 20%.
"We absolutely eviscerated this quarter,” Karp said in the earnings release, attributing said growth to “unrelenting AI demand,” especially within the U.S. “Given how strong our results are, I almost feel like we should just go home," he added.
CNBC’s Jim Cramer said Karp’s recognition of his reputation is rare, and seemed to be in favor of it. “Very few CEOs on conference calls—at least–—talk about self-pleasuring and admitting that they are crazy, but I have to admit Karp’s insanity is growing on me and the Palantir narrative is compelling,” he tweeted.
Fortune has reached Karp for comment.
Alex Karp and Palantir’s polarizing reputation
The software company, which is named after a crystal ball in The Lord of the Rings, has faced criticism for its dark usages while working with the U.S. military. Amnesty International has called out the software company’s “increasingly entrenched role in government operations,” citing human rights concerns.
Mainstay of the tech world, journalist Kara Swisher criticized Palantir’s ethos in The New York Times. “While Palantir promises a more efficient and cost-effective way to conduct war, should our goal be to make it less expensive, onerous and painful? After all, war is not a video game, nor should it be,” she said.
But its CEO is no less divisive. Karp shared his views on Western supremacy in a rare interview with the New York Times, saying his company has a stance “that the West has a superior way of living and organizing itself, especially if we live up to our aspirations.”
In that same interview, Karp revealed he doesn’t know how to drive, lives in New Hampshire by himself with a full staff (including a ski instructor), and claims to be “progressive” despite reportedly using his company to aid former President Trump in deporting immigrants.
“I just think I’ve always viewed myself as I don’t fit in, and I can’t really try to,” said Karp, who has backed Kamala Harris, but also claimed that California is “too woke” on Bill Maher.
"I've been distanced [from Silicon Valley] for the last 15 years. And so I'm used to being social distanced in the Valley. And now social distancing has become a way of life,” Karp said in an interview with Axios in 2020.
