Palantir’s work with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), including a reported USD 30 million extension for its “ImmigrationOS” platform, has drawn sustained criticism from civil society  organisations for allegedly enabling large-scale tracking of persons within the United States and providing technology that may facilitate arbitrary detention and deportation outcomes. Separately, reporting by Reuters that the Pentagon elevated Palantir’s Maven system into a core military program—following more than USD 1.3 billion in defence contracts—has intensified scrutiny over AI-enabled targeting and battlefield decision support, including concerns raised by groups such as Amnesty International regarding accountability in automated or semi-automated lethal systems.

Civil society concerns have been mounting over the years:

• 2018 - Mijente launched the #NoTechForICE campaign which advocated for divestment by institutional investors
• 2019 – The Investor Alliance for Human Rights created a briefing on Palantir for their investor members citing human rights concerns and material risks linked to the company.
• 2020 – Amnesty International accused Palantir of failing to guarantee its software isn’t being used to facilitate racial profiling against migrants, and urged the company to begin carrying out human rights due diligence prior to its IPO.
• 2021 – Protests in the UK begin around Palantir’s eventual involvement with NHS data infrastructure during the COVID-19 pandemic; In April 2026 over 200,000 people have signed petitions urging the government to cancel the ongoing contracts.
• 2025 -- Palantir is named by the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian Territories as facilitating the “unlawful use of force”.
• 2025 – Amnesty International alleged that Palantir is among a list of companies “contributing to Israel’s unlawful occupation, genocide or other crimes under international law.”
• 2026 – The Business and Human Rights Centre, Heartland Initiative, Open MIC and Empower published a report on the material risks linked to pension funds investing in unregulated generative AI powered systems that can be used for military and defense purposes, naming Palantir among the list of companies requiring heightened human rights due diligence.
• 2026 – Activists in Minneapolis, at the heart of the protests against US ICE operations, begin campaigning for the Swiss National Bank to divest an estimated USD 1.1 billion interest in Palantir.

Now more than ever, investors are facing increasing pressure from stakeholders and oversight bodies to justify holdings in companies associated with controversial surveillance and defence applications. With regard to Palantir specifically, the following developments raise materiality concerns:

• 2019 – Students from 17 universities, including Yale, Stanford, Harvard, sign a pledge stating that they will not work for Palantir citing human rights concerns.
• 2021 – Soros Fund Management announced that it divested from Palantir
• 2023 – The use of Palantir’s technologies in Hesse and Hamburg Germany was ruled as unconstitutional following a case filed by the German Society for Civil Rights (GFF). Other jurisdictions within Germany also begin rejecting the use of Palantir’s technologies.
• 2024 – Storebrand Asset Management divested from Palantir citing the company’s “sales of products and services to Israel for use in occupied Palestinian territories."
• 2025 – Health officials in the UK reportedly warned the government that “public perception of Palantir would limit its rollout, meaning the contract would not offer value for money.”
• 2025 – The University of San Francisco announced that it will divest from defense companies, including Palantir, due to student protesting.
• 2025 – Republik publishes a piece alleging that Palantir was unsuccessful in obtaining contracts in Switzerland, and Palantir then filed a lawsuit against the magazine. As reported by The Guardian: “Palantir has the right to sue for a right of reply, if they wish to do so,” says Marguerite Meyer, a journalist who works with WAV. “However, we adhered to all journalistic standards, and had a thorough factcheck done. They are suing for an absurd list of changes. It does feel like an intimidation campaign.” Palantir has stated the article provides a “false and misleading narrative” about the company.
• February 2026 – Palantir is reportedly removed from Bank of America’s “Top Investment List” indicating that the company “may no longer align with their highest confidence recommendations.”
• March 2026 – Clients in New York reportedly decide not to renew contracts with Palantir due to mounting reputational risk.
• March 2026 -- KBC and Degroof Petercam reportedly remove Palantir from their sustainable investment funds.
• March 2026 – Argenta reportedly removes Palantir from all of its investment funds.
• April 2026 – Members of the European Parliament are bringing questions about Palantir before the European Commission.
• April 2026 -- Stichting Pensioenfonds ABP divested from Palantir stating that “ABP weighs risks, costs, and how sustainable and responsible an investment is when making decisions".
• May 2026 -- Cardano announces to the BHRC that it is reclassifying certain companies under its Sustainability Framework, and then removed 5,888,014 Palantir shares (-89.4%) from its portfolio in Q1 2026.

Palantir’s response to civil society allegations 

Palantir has responded to the allegations listed above in various media outlets, and has directly responded to related BHRC outreach. Responses can be found below, as well as on Palantir’s company dashboard:

Letter from Palantir responding to Amnesty International (2020)

Response from Palantir Technologies to allegations that it enables surveillance in American Dragnet report (2022)

Palantir response to the use of generative AI in conflict contexts (2023)

Palantir response to allegations over its complicity in war crimes amid Israel’s war in Gaza (2025)

Investor outreach regarding civil society allegations

On 1 May 2026, the Business and Human Rights Centre contacted a number of investors who have been publicly named as being invested in Palantir either directly or indirectly through General Partners or other business operations. The BHRC contacted Norges Bank, Amundi, Legal & General, Barclays, Deutsche Bank, BNP Paribas, Swiss National Bank, Cardano, Santander, BBVA, California Public Employees’ Retirement System (CalPERS), California State Teachers’ Retirement System (CalSTRS), New York State Common Retirement Fund, New York State Teachers’ Retirement System. Nine out of 14 investors responded.

The New York State Comptroller's Office, on behalf of the New York State Common Retirement Fund, noted the following:
"While the Fund recognizes that many companies provide products and services to government agencies, there has recently been intense public criticism, controversy, and scrutiny surrounding immigration enforcement and human rights impacts. Companies whose business is tied to these controversies may face significant legal, operational, and reputational risks that may adversely affect shareholder value. Furthermore, changes in government spending priorities, budget constraints, or shifts in immigration policies may impact a company’s ability to secure and maintain contracts, leading to revenue instability and unpredictability."

Investors cited a diversity of actions they are taking, including sending letters to the company, privately engaging with the company, voting against the company's board members, and even the reclassification of the company within its sustainable investment policy, leading to divestment.

Prior to Palantirs AGM on 3 June 2026, investors voted on three shareholder proposals. As described by the company:

• Proposal 4: Independent report on due diligence process for defense-related products, focused on human rights risks, presented by the Presbyterian Church U.S.A.
• Proposal 5: Human rights impact assessment, requesting publication of assessment results, presented by the Sisters of St. Joseph of Peace.
• Proposal 6: Political spending disclosure, requesting periodic reports on political contributions, presented by the New York State Common Retirement Fund.

Notably, NBIM voted in favor of two of these proposals, calling for increased transparency and a human rights impact assessment. All three proposals were unsuccessful; however, an industry report stated that the market reaction was "negative, with shares falling 5.76% to USD 143.4 as of June 3, 2026...A key concern for investors was the lack of support for shareholder proposals, which were intended to enhance the company's accountability and transparency."

See the investors' responses in full below.