Palantir Defends Work With ICE to Staff Following Killing of Alex Pretti | WIREDSkip to main contentMenuSECURITYPOLITICSTHE BIG STORYBUSINESSSCIENCECULTUREREVIEWSMenuAccountAccountNewslettersSecurityPoliticsThe Big StoryBusinessScienceCultureReviewsChevronMoreExpandThe Big InterviewMagazineEventsWIRED InsiderWIRED ConsultingNewslettersPodcastsVideoMerchSearchSearchSign InSign InMakena KellyPoliticsJan 26, 2026 5:09 PMPalantir Defends Work With ICE to Staff Following Killing of Alex Pretti“In my opinion ICE are the bad guys. I am not proud that the company I enjoy so much working for is part of this,” one worker wrote on Slack.Photograph: INA FASSBENDER/Getty ImagesSave StorySave this storySave StorySave this storyAfter federal agents shot and killed Minneapolis nurse Alex Pretti on Saturday, Palantir workers pressed for answers from leadership on the company’s work with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)—and many questioned whether Palantir should be involved with the agency at all. Leadership defended its work as in part improving “ICE’s operational effectiveness.”Internal Slack messages reviewed by WIRED reveal growing frustration within Palantir over its relationship with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), and in particular, ICE’s enforcement and investigations teams. In response, Palantir’s privacy and civil liberties team published an update to the company’s internal wiki detailing its work on federal immigration enforcement, arguing that the “technology is making a difference in mitigating risks while enabling targeted outcomes.”In a Saturday thread on Slack discussing Pretti’s killing, Palantir workers questioned both the ethics and the business logic of continuing the company’s work with ICE.“Our involvement with ice has been internally swept under the rug under Trump2 too much. We need an understanding of our involvement here,” one person wrote.“Can Palantir put any pressure on ICE at all?” wrote another. “I’ve read stories of folks rounded up who were seeking asylum with no order to leave the country, no criminal record, and consistently check in with authorities. Literally no reason to be rounded up. Surely we aren’t helping do that?”The discussion was held in a company-wide Slack channel dedicated to general world news coverage. The messages viewed by WIRED received dozens of “+1” emoji responses from other workers seemingly backing requests for more information about Palantir’s relationship with ICE. Palantir did not respond to requests for comment from WIRED.On Sunday, Courtney Bowman, Palantir’s global director of privacy and civil liberties engineering, responded to the avalanche of employee questions by linking out to the company’s internal wiki describing its DHS and immigration enforcement contracts. The post—last updated, at the time WIRED reviewed it, on January 24 by Akash Jain, whose LinkedIn lists him as chief technology officer and president of Palantir USG, which works with US government agencies—says that in April 2025, Palantir began a six-month pilot supporting ICE in three major areas: “Enforcement Operations Prioritization and Targeting,” “Self-Deportation Tracking,” and “Immigration Lifecycle Operations focused on logistics planning and execution.”Those functions align with a $30 million contract ICE awarded Palantir in April for a platform called ImmigrationOS. According to contracting information provided by DHS at the time, the system would give ICE “near real-time visibility” into people self-deporting and help the agency identify and select who to deport. According to Palantir’s wiki, the pilot for these services was renewed in September for an additional six-month period, and the self-deportation tracking “is being folded into the work on Enforcement Operations Prioritization and Targeting.”Palantir has also started a new pilot with US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to assist officials “in identifying fraudulent benefit submissions,” the wiki says. The Trump administration has used allegations of fraud to justify increased ICE presence in cities like Minneapolis.Got a Tip?Are you a current or former Palantir or government worker who wants to talk about immigration enforcement? We'd like to hear from you. Using a nonwork phone or computer, contact the reporter securely on Signal at makenakelly.32.“There have been increasing, and increasingly visible, field operations focused on interior immigration enforcement that continue to attract attention to Palantir’s involvement with ICE,” the wiki says. “We believe that our work could have a real and positive impact on ICE enforcement operations by providing officers and agents with the data to make more precise, informed decisions. We are committed to giving our partners the best software for the job, while acknowledging the reputational risk we face when supporting immigration enforcement operations.”The wiki acknowledges “increasing reporting around U.S. Citizens being swept up in enforcement action and held, as well as reports of racial profiling allegedly applied as pretense for the detention of some U.S. Citizens,” but argues that Palantir’s customers at ICE “remain committed to avoiding the unlawful/unnecessary targeting, apprehension, and detention of U.S. Citizens wherever and however possible.”After Bowman linked out to the updated wiki on Slack on Sunday, some workers asked additional questions about the capabilities of Palantir’s products and services and whether ICE could use them beyond the scope of the company’s contracts. When one worker asked whether ICE could build its own workflows outside of the company’s contract, like pulling data from outside sources, the response was blunt: “Yes, we do not take the position of policing the use of our platform for every workflow,” Jain said. He acknowledged that Palantir builds in “strong controls,” but “that doesn’t mean there won’t be bad apples, mistakes or other issues that lead to adverse outcomes. Those have to be governed by the law and oversight mechanisms within the system—just like a commercial customer.”Pulling data from outside sources, whether that be from other agencies or commercially available third-party data, would expand DHS’s ability to surveil migrants and citizens alike.Palantir has been largely tight-lipped about its work with ICE over the last year, resulting in workers relying on news reports for information about what services the company is actually providing. That tension escalated over the weekend after Pretti’s killing with at least a dozen workers demanding more clarification.On Friday, independent journalist Ken Klippenstein shared a video showing what appears to be an ICE agent scanning a legal observer’s car. When the observer asks why the agent is documenting their vehicle, the agent responds, saying, “We have a nice little database, and now you’re considered a domestic terrorist. So have fun with that.” (This does not appear to be an isolated incident; according to a declaration filed last week in support of Minnesota’s lawsuit versus Kristi Noem, an ICE agent shattered a car window before detaining the two people inside, telling them their actions—honking the car horn to alert nearby bystanders to ICE’s presence—amounted to “domestic terrorism.”)One Palantir worker posted the video into the company’s Slack on Sunday, asking leadership whether it was providing such a database to ICE. “Ack, I’m not tracking any database like this that were [sic] involved with/exists,” Jain replied.The wiki says, “Palantir does not in any way enable ICE personnel to have direct or unfettered access to third-agency databases or datasets outside of those shared for specific operational purposes within the bounds of established data sharing agreements.” Over the last year, ICE has expanded its data-sharing with outside agencies, including the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). Last April, WIRED reported that Elon Musk’s so-called Department of Government Efficiency was building a master database at DHS to track and surveil migrants, using data from agencies including the Social Security Administration and IRS.Palantir did not respond to a request for comment on whether its software powers the database referenced in the video.Palantir’s work with the federal government has grown significantly throughout President Donald Trump’s first year in office, as it has secured more than $900 million in federal contracts, according to The Hill. Beyond the company’s work in immigration enforcement and the US military, Palantir has also worked with the Internal Revenue Service to build a “mega API” for accessing internal agency records. Still, some workers are still critical of the work.“In my opinion ICE are the bad guys. I am not proud that the company I enjoy so much working for is part of this,” a worker said in the thread discussing Pretti’s killing. “Thinking pragmatically: is the reputational damage we’re taking for being associated with them worth it? What if the next administration will be democratic and they cut all the contracts with us?”You Might Also LikeIn your inbox: WIRED's most ambitious, future-defining storiesDoes the “war on protein” exist?Big Story: China’s renewable energy revolution might save the worldThe race to build the DeepSeek of Europe is onWatch our livestream replay: Welcome to the Chinese centuryMakena Kelly is a senior writer at WIRED focused on the intersection of politics, power, and technology. She writes the Politics Lab newsletter that helps you make sense of how the internet is shaping our political reality—sign up here. She was previously at The Verge, CQ Roll Call, and the ... Read MoreSenior Writer, Tech and PoliticsTopicsPalantirMinnesotaImmigration and Customs EnforcementimmigrationgovernmentDepartment of Homeland SecurityRead MoreUS Hackers Reportedly Caused a Blackout in VenezuelaPlus: AI reportedly caused ICE to send agents into the field without training, Palantir’s app for targeting immigrants gets exposed, and more.Trump Warned of a Tren de Aragua ‘Invasion.’ US Intel Told a Different StoryHundreds of records obtained by WIRED show thin intelligence on the Venezuelan gang in the United States, describing fragmented, low-level crime rather than a coordinated terrorist threat.Why ICE Can Kill With ImpunityOver the past decade, US immigration agents have shot and killed more than two dozen people. Not a single agent appears to have faced criminal charges.Right-Wing Influencers Have Flooded MinneapolisClips from creators in Minnesota have become primary evidence in attempts by the right wing to justify ICE’s surge on American cities.Inside OpenAI’s Raid on Thinking Machines LabOpenAI is planning to bring over more researchers from Thinking Machines Lab after nabbing two cofounders, a source familiar with the situation says. Plus, the latest efforts to automate jobs with AI.Dozens of ICE Vehicles in Minnesota Lack ‘Necessary’ Lights and SirensA contract justification published in a federal register on Tuesday says that 31 ICE vehicles operating in the Twin Cities area “lack the necessary emergency lights and sirens” to be “compliant.”What to Do if ICE Invades Your NeighborhoodWith federal agents storming the streets of American communities, there’s no single right way to approach this dangerous moment. But there are steps you can take to stay safe—and have an impact.ICE Agent Who Reportedly Shot Renee Good Was a Firearms Trainer, per TestimonyJonathan Ross told a federal court in December about his professional background, including “hundreds” of encounters with drivers during enforcement actions, according to testimony obtained by WIRED.OpenAI Is Asking Contractors to Upload Work From Past Jobs to Evaluate the Performance of AI AgentsTo prepare AI agents for office work, the company is asking contractors to upload projects from past jobs, leaving it to them to strip out confidential and personally identifiable information.Minnesota Is Just the Beginning. California and New York Are ‘Next’The Trump administration appears to be planning to leverage the same playbook used in Minnesota to go after other blue states.MAGA Is Already Rewriting the ICE Shooting in MinneapolisThe federal government’s narrative of the Minneapolis shooting conflicts wildly with video footage of the incident shared online.Trump Doesn’t Need the Proud Boys AnymoreIn a world where ICE agents are shooting US citizens on the street, the need for militias and extremist groups like the Proud Boys to support far-right interests has evaporated.WIRED is obsessed with what comes next. Through rigorous investigations and game-changing reporting, we tell stories that don’t just reflect the moment—they help create it. When you look back in 10, 20, even 50 years, WIRED will be the publication that led the story of the present, mapped the people, products, and ideas defining it, and explained how those forces forged the future. 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Palantir Defended its Work with ICE, Despite Worker Concerns Following Alex Pretti’s Death | WIRED

January 26, 2026

Following the fatal shooting of Minneapolis nurse Alex Pretti by federal agents, Palantir, a data analytics company, faced intense criticism from its own staff regarding its involvement with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The controversy prompted a defensive response from leadership, aiming to justify the company’s continued partnership with the agency. Internal Slack communications, reviewed by WIRED, revealed significant employee frustration and questions about the ethical implications of Palantir’s work.

The core of the issue stemmed from Palantir’s role in supporting ICE’s operational effectiveness. In response to the uproar, the company’s privacy and civil liberties team published an internal wiki update detailing the specifics of their DHS and immigration enforcement contracts. This update, last revised on January 24 by Akash Jain, Palantir USG’s chief technology officer and president, outlined a six-month pilot program commencing in April 2025. This pilot was focused on three key areas: “Enforcement Operations Prioritization and Targeting,” “Self-Deportation Tracking,” and “Immigration Lifecycle Operations focused on logistics planning and execution.”

The $30 million contract awarded to Palantir by ICE involved the development of ImmigrationOS, a platform designed to provide ICE with “near real-time visibility” into individuals self-deporting and assist in identifying those to be deported. The pilot program was subsequently renewed for another six-month period in September, and the “self-deportation tracking” component was integrated into the “Enforcement Operations Prioritization and Targeting” work. Palantir also initiated a new pilot with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to identify fraudulent benefit submissions.

Despite the company’s efforts to provide context, employees remained skeptical. A Slack thread, sparked by the Pretti shooting, highlighted concerns about Palantir’s role in potentially facilitating unlawful or discriminatory enforcement actions. One worker directly questioned the ethics of the partnership, while another inquired about the possibility of Palantir exerting influence over ICE’s activities. Palantir’s leadership, through Courtney Bowman, the company’s global director of privacy and civil liberties engineering, linked to the updated wiki on Slack. However, this response was met with further questions regarding the capabilities of Palantir's products and whether ICE could independently utilize their data outside of the contract parameters.

A key point of contention revolved around the potential for ICE to access broader datasets. The company asserted that Palantir does not enable ICE personnel to have “direct or unfettered access” to third-agency databases, emphasizing the need for data sharing agreements and oversight mechanisms. Nevertheless, the controversy underscored broader concerns about Palantir’s involvement in surveillance and data collection practices, particularly in light of previous government contracts, including work with the IRS and the Department of Homeland Security’s “mega API.”

The incident amplified existing tensions within Palantir, revealing a division between leadership’s justifications and the moral concerns of its employees. The Pretti shooting served as a stark reminder of the potential consequences of the company’s involvement in immigration enforcement, further fueling the debate regarding the ethical boundaries of technology’s role in shaping societal control and potentially leading to more significant scrutiny of Palantir’s future partnerships.