Microsoft, Palantir partner to make AI and data tools available for national security missions

The federal intelligence and defense communities are getting access to an array of artificial intelligence and analytics products to support mission-planning in their classified networks, two of the country’s top tech giants said in announcing a new partnership Thursday.

Under the agreement between Palantir and Microsoft, national security leaders will be able to leverage a “first-of-its-kind, integrated suite of technology” to operationalize their missions. In Microsoft’s government and classified cloud environments, intelligence and defense officials can utilize the company’s large language models through the Azure OpenAI Service within Palantir’s AI Platform (AIP), according to the announcement.

“This expanded partnership between Microsoft and Palantir will help accelerate the safe, secure, and responsible deployment of advanced AI capabilities for the U.S. government,” Deb Cupp, president of Microsoft Americas, said in a statement. “Palantir, a leader in delivering actionable insights to government, will now leverage the power of Microsoft’s government and classified clouds and robust Azure OpenAI models to further develop AI innovations for national security missions.”

In addition to the availability of its AI platform, Palantir’s Gotham and Apollo products — a data-driven enterprise mission-planning platform and an operational software deployment control center, respectively — will be installed in Microsoft Azure Government, as well as in the Azure Government Secret (Defense Department Impact Level 6) and Top Secret clouds. 

Palantir’s Foundry product, which leverages data integration and ontology capabilities, will also be available in those Microsoft cloud environments, providing mission operators with AI tools to help with everything from logistics to contracting to action planning. 

The Palantir Federal Cloud Service, which includes Gotham, Foundry, AIP and other products, will also be authorized for use on Microsoft Azure for IL5 environments, the announcement noted.

The use of all Palantir and Microsoft services included in the deal are contingent on intelligence and defense staffers completing authorization and accreditation requirements as determined by the relevant federal agencies. 

“Bringing Palantir and Microsoft capabilities to our national security apparatus is a step change in how we can support the defense and intelligence communities,” Shyam Sankar, Palantir’s chief technology officer, said in a statement. “It’s our mission to deliver this software advantage and we’re thrilled to be the first industry partner to deploy Microsoft Azure OpenAI Service in classified environments.” 

News of the partnership comes in the wake of a blockbuster quarter for Palantir in government sales. The company reported $371 million in sales in the category, a 23% year-over-year increase. Trailing revenue for the past year after the second quarter from Palantir’s federal government work surpassed $1 billion for the first time, the company reported this week. 

Microsoft, meanwhile, is reportedly in line for an expansion of services across all Pentagon components, and continues to be the top heavyweight among government contractors, even as it fends off critics of its cyber practices following a series of security failures.