Palantir CEO on Iran, AI Weapons and American Domination | a16z American Dynamism Summit

We were the freak show and we spent 20 years for this moment.

>> We're doing it. We're doing it. And I'm

sure you're enjoying this as much as I am.

>> I just got three things to say. God

bless our troops. God bless America and gentlemen start your

>> We are the power that actually has the decisive vote and that is with military superiority. If Silicon Valley believes

superiority. If Silicon Valley believes we are going to take away everyone's white collar job, you're the most

important thing Palanteer is doing is to make sure that American war fighters are much more likely to come home. If we are going to outperform the rest of the

world, our single advantage is Dr. Carp, it is a pleasure to finally have the OG American Dynamism founder on stage with us at the 4th annual summit.

Um I think gosh if we had >> do this like that.

>> Yes. Um I think if we had you guys don't get that there's a gang signs.

>> No, I think we all got the the reference. Um

reference. Um >> Maddiey's in the audience. He doesn't

get out much. He's like, "Huh? What is

that? This is going to be a great conversation. So, I think uh if we had

conversation. So, I think uh if we had this conversation 72 hours ago, it would have been very different. Um but of course there's been a lot of news and so I want to get straight to to the news and what's happening in the world. Um

because Palanteer is certainly um part of that story. So over the weekend uh the US and Israel bombed Iran and Operation Epic Fury. Ayatollah how many is dead. The Middle East is now at war.

is dead. The Middle East is now at war.

What do you think the situation means for the future of the West? Something

you talk a lot about and the future of America. Well, first of all, I'm

America. Well, first of all, I'm delighted to be on stage with you and um you know, for many of you in this audience, by the way, I'm I've been talking so much I'm kind of losing my voice, but I didn't I I would have

probably canceled on anyone but you. But

>> Oh, that that means a lot. We're glad

you're here.

>> I love to cancel, by the way, for those of you cuz like it's my favorite thing cuz I I actually am an introvert. Any

excuse to cancel as as Palunteerians know. It's uh Yeah. Um but yeah, you've

know. It's uh Yeah. Um but yeah, you've been such a force um in public and behind the scenes for you know I think

helping people in the broadly speaking defense tech or let America wins or things that are good uh broadly defined.

Um, and then we also align on something we could talk about later on, like the importance of not putting our youth in straight jackets because they're divergent neurologically, which is a

passion of of mine and should be a passion of everyone's since >> you could define our wonderful and great country as a country where everyone who

was divergent in ideology, thought, religion or quite frankly like uh uh neurologically came to this country to have a better place where they could

express their freedom and had the right to a express what they thought which and there's a deep link between expressing what you think publicly and privately

first and fourth amendment and being able to think it and if that doesn't work being able to defend it with the second amendment uh and uh the and last

not least our our founders founders uh uh did not structure these rights the way they are in say where I lived for a lot of my life in Germany as rights

granted to us by other bureaucrats. We

they're given to us. They're inaliable

from a higher being.

>> Uh and uh I would just say before I get into uh how the world's changed, we have American uh war fighters on the battlefield. Uh s willing to sacrifice

battlefield. Uh s willing to sacrifice their lives. Uh some of whom have

their lives. Uh some of whom have sacrificed their lives. They have

families and kids. Kids and families don't know if their loved ones are coming home. And uh you know we uh I

coming home. And uh you know we uh I know in this room but we should publicly privately support them and people who are not aware or somehow so effing

spoiled that they don't realize what these people do for us we should publicly humiliate them. Uh and everyone

has a role in that. uh um and especially those of us who are riding a crest of of of

intergenerational cultural intellectual courage advantage which it which it is to be an American nowadays should not obviously should not forget uh the war

fighter who are disproportionately uh from uh the middle of our our country and disproportionately have gotten screwed

Uh and uh you know I'm proud uh very proud that at Palunteer uh you know we we get arrows and people I mean half the people attacking us it'd

be good if they spent two minutes on Wikipedia at least learning the talking points they're regurgitating but uh but um you know there's some legitimate

criticisms uh of any company but at the end of the day the fact is the most important thing Palanteer is doing than I other people in this room are

doing and people like you and other people adjacent or ancillary to building uh uh more lethal and deadly weapons is

to make sure that American war fighters uh are much more likely to come home and quite frankly the people who are trying to harm them uh know that they won't be

coming home and that's the way you stop people from attacking us in my opinion and then on the the kind of um the leading up to what's going on. But I

think the there are probably people in this room who are wildly supportive uh and there are people who aren't. It is

hard to deny that America is exerting a deterrent capability that was eviscerated.

you you can like or not like that's different than ignoring we now have a deterrent capability that no other country appears to have and that is for

for lots of reasons and obviously uh the war fighter people organized the war fighter the generals the leadership the president

but one advantage that often gets overlooked in it for reasons that make no sense is war fighting is technology ology, you know, I I spent half my life

in in in Germany for familiar reasons and then I wrote my PhD there. It it the and then the rise of America after World War II, the reason America was able to

win World War II were technological advantages. And if you look what

advantages. And if you look what happened in, you know, Operation Midnight Hammer, what happened in Venezuela, what's so far happening uh uh

in in in Iran, you see one society just totally dominating. That's our society.

totally dominating. That's our society.

Now, you could get into I I would I I'm always in fights with my intellectual friends about they're they're like, "But wouldn't it be better to have a rule a a law-based system where everyone is

equal?" Yeah, sure. in theory, but in

equal?" Yeah, sure. in theory, but in this world, it's us or China or Russia.

>> Yeah.

>> And I don't know how you guys feel about those decisions, but I think we're doing I literally believe we're doing the work of higher a higher purpose by making sure and not just for America, but for

the whole world that we are the power that actually has the decisive vote. And

there is only one way to do that and that is with military superiority. And

when I say military superiority, I don't mean that we're arguing on a PowerPoint.

It means but America. So now you get to what is technology done? Now again, I think whenever people like me are talking about this, it you can't say enough that it's the war fighter and

their courage and I'm not doing that.

I'm sitting here um and you know and I'm not and we have Palunteerians all over on like I'm talking to them constantly.

So they're doing they're putting themselves in harm's way and you know um uh I'm I am kind of but not directly.

It's mostly all the people who yell at me and I guess maybe there are some people want to shoot at me but um it the the the if you look at the rise of like

in the in the lifetime of Palunteer there's been the rise of software which essentially me meant your you know software company that is supplying a steak dinner that's obviously parasitic

is not cutting it that kind of those those companies are being eviscerated you the rise of defense tech and now you have a hybrid software, hardware, AI

where you really need all three. Um,

interestingly from an investment perspective, um, you know, I would say the last company standing before we all have to salute the overlord of the LLM

will be Palanteer. But it's mainly >> we're going to get into that, I promise.

mainly because um you there it's it's the specificity of and the security and the orchestration but none of that has to make any sense to anyone in this room. I'll tell you

what it makes a lot of sense to our adversaries right now. How is America doing this? Now again it's specialized

doing this? Now again it's specialized ways. It's 25 30 years of experience in

ways. It's 25 30 years of experience in fighting its meritocracy. The department

of war is the most meritocratic environment. It integrated in Korea

environment. It integrated in Korea before our society did. Uh it's it it is the most popular institution and most revered institution and

probably the only institution in America that is actually revered by the American people across every demographic. And

it's revered by the American people across every demographic precisely because it's been meritocratic. If if

you were a black American, uh you got your break in America by going to the military. if you wanted to be treated

military. if you wanted to be treated fairly uh and you were from a group that you felt that every demographic has somebody who is in the military whose life was changed and it did something

noble and wonderful for America. They

also have the experience of coming home in America not sticking up for them. We

should change that. Now you get to Silicon Valley. Uh my one message for

Silicon Valley. Uh my one message for and again I I don't I'm without getting in specific people or cuz I'm like

if Silicon Valley believes we are going to take away everyone's white collar job

meaning primarily democratic shaped uh people whom I grew up with highly educated people who went to elite schools or went to schools that are

almost elite who vote for one party and you're going screwed the military. If

you don't think that's going to lead to nationalization of our technology, you're [ __ ] And you might be particularly [ __ ] because you have a 160 IQ, but it you this is where that

path is going.

>> Like you cannot have technologies that simultaneously take away everyone's job and then be perceived. Again, there's a lot of subtlety here behind behind the

curtain. I've been heavily involved in

curtain. I've been heavily involved in that subtlety. what can be where it can

that subtlety. what can be where it can be deployed what can be deployed there's a difference between US military and surveillance and despite what everyone thinks Palanteer is the

anti-surveillance company I know your person online thinks that's not true but every technical expert does so I end up in every conversation that I don't want

to be in but the the danger for our industry is that America you get a you get a famous horseshoe effect where there's only one thing people agree on

and that's that this is not paying the bills and people and our industry should be nationalized and and so the the the societal benefit that is going on in

Iran besides the fact that I think I suspect the Iranian people feel like finally someone's on my side and it wasn't the Berkeley faculty that was

supposed to like me. Uh it it's uh um a big lesson for you. Yeah. So um and but then as America we and a people who are

prominent in the tech industry, you know, we have to find a way to make sure that we're not just popular in PaloAlto.

>> Yeah. I I want to get back to something you just said, which is that, you know, that it's it's either us winning or China winning or Russia winning or another country that it's a zero- sum game. And it feels like the people in

game. And it feels like the people in this room in Washington really understand that AI is zero sum, but that Silicon Valley doesn't. Silicon Valley

doesn't like to think in terms of zero sum. They like to think that everything

sum. They like to think that everything is a positive sum game. So, how would you explain to the people in Silicon Valley who are again building the LLMs, you know, building um what what they would say is a brand new net new technology that hasn't existed before

and therefore it needs to be treated differently. What would you say to them

differently. What would you say to them about this?

>> Well, I mean, there's so first of all, it's it's um by the way, I just want to push back slightly. They do think it's zero sum. They think it's zero sum

zero sum. They think it's zero sum versus each other.

>> So like they absolutely are fighting.

There will be like you know it's my own rhetoric if I happen to think it's true.

It's going to be chips ontology and I suspect in the end one one and a half provider. So they pretend they don't

provider. So they pretend they don't think it's zero sum but then ask them how they feel about their competitor. So

it's very very I mean these people are fighting very very hard for the dominant position. So like what they don't

position. So like what they don't understand is in the world it's zero sum. But I I actually think the primary

sum. But I I actually think the primary issue in the valley is it's going to be zero sum visav when America decides that look okay I have I I interact with a lot of

political figures I have a lot of respect I think in some are when politicians figure out this is the one winning issue it is going to be zero sum

it's going to be your money and your company being zero sum nationalized so that's the part they don't understand fe helping people understand that, you

know, either we set the rules or deacto like I'm I'm much more I'm much more on America should be strong so that we don't have to worry about the enemies than our enemies are evil kind of thing.

So I'm not super neocon. It seems to be very hard in this culture as someone who's lived abroad a lot of my life.

It's very hard in this culture to explain to people that we're in a competitive environment because things here are so good. They don't understand

how different it will be and how much we will change and how much the pressure will be on America, not just legally, but militarily and culturally if we fall

behind. And I I I one of the things that

behind. And I I I one of the things that again it's so I I personally think the better way to get people to change is to

>> okay it it Go bring people like that to Iowa. Bring them to DC and explain to

Iowa. Bring them to DC and explain to our American political leadership why you make hund00 million and why a soldier from Iowa can't explain to his

wife he has the best technology and then go across the hall. So let's classically Republican shaped. Then go across the

Republican shaped. Then go across the hall and talk to progressive Democrats about how everyone in their constituency is not going to have a job. and then

leave and imagine what's going to happen to you.

>> You know the funny thing about those of us who've spent most of our life abroad like in Germany which a phenomenal culture we have a much better sense of how fragile this exper experiment is

America it could go wrong >> and it will go wrong if if all wealth is going to a small number of people and those people do not appear to be on side now that perception might is obviously a

caricature. It is a caricature in the

caricature. It is a caricature in the sense this is new technology and you're not going to be able to use the same kind of framework and you're going to need people who appreciate how it's

different and there are real questions about fourth amendment protections like our right to privacy. What is privacy in a world where you could imputee what someone's doing at home through technology? H how do you protect our

technology? H how do you protect our right to have our own thoughts, our own ideas, our own practices at home, our own health records? that those are real

issues when the technology can also help you to be healthier, live longer, uh have a higher economic status potentially, certainly if you're a vocational worker. But so those issues

vocational worker. But so those issues have to be unpacked. And where Silicon Valley is right is you you're going to need a forum to talk about that that

doesn't pretend, you know, large language models is the same thing as machine learning is the same thing as software is the same thing as a bullet.

They're they're not. Yeah.

>> Um but um but but but but de facto I I very much believe u as a critique of the

uh like economic elite especially in in the technical area there's there's like to use an econom a kind of overly economic uh a philosophical term they

reify meaning they turn it into a thing our rights but those rights you know when I was in Germany I I was there and there were I spent a lot of time I did a

PhD uh but I you know there were a lot of older Germans and I I would spend time with them in the countryside in the city of course they they didn't know anybody who was a Nazi in the countryside they're like we were all

Nazis so I would ask them but one of the more fascinating conversations is why they became Democrats or not like left right but capital D and it was always

because it worked and then the unwinding of it that we don't ask if it unwinds you know, our it will we will not be protected

>> and it it's just the dialogue we have currently is not acknowledging what's going to happen politically, what is happening politically. The the wealth

happening politically. The the wealth tax is a derivative of this because everyone knows the wealth tax isn't going to help the poor. It's just going to [ __ ] the rich and that's enough to get it done. M

>> and if if that's happening, just imagine what's going to happen when it's like there's going to be 50 unlikable people with all the money.

>> Anybody here like that? And you guys are doing well.

>> No. No. I I I want to get back to to kind of the conversation about how um how we ensure that the Department of War continues to lead on AI because I think this has been top of mind for everyone

in the room for the last 48 hours. um

our adversaries are looking at you know contracting wars um that are playing out in press releases you know what is your view on how we can ensure that we win this AI race against the PRC if you if

you're giving advice to all the founders and CEOs of of you know the the the >> first thing part of what I'm doing and part of the reason I mean besides your charm and importance part of the reason

I want to be here is uh I want my reputation in the valley every you always have reputations my reputation which the rep I'm not even saying the reputation is true. But in my case, like

I'm viewed as the batshit crazy guy who is often telling you something you don't want to hear and you may not like but is probably right.

And >> that's true.

>> So yeah, and that's why I want you to send this first step. We have to they're not understanding the stakes and what I nothing's going to happen till people

understand the stakes. This will affect you. Now then the question is like what

you. Now then the question is like what Hollywood did is Hollywood got together the whole rating system was Hollywood realized if we don't do rating ratings

Washington's going to and Washington is going to butcher it >> and let's even say Washington doesn't want to butcher it but like it it doesn't understand the metier

>> so the first step is everybody and I'm already on the phone with people saying okay great I understand your issue but you realize the wolves are at the gate and they already have tasted blood.

>> Yeah.

>> Uh the second step is we have to find ways where we get together and say okay like if you just want to go through the issues yes there are you know using

technologies in the context of eviscerating fourth amendment rights in America is a is something left and right in this country actually don't want. It's a

caricature to believe that either side wants it. There are people on the

wants it. There are people on the honestly I'm in private rooms. There are people on the left who don't care about these issues who pretend to do it in p do in public but there are people and there are people on the right who

pretend not to care who do care. Both

parties have significant coalitions and the American people cares care and it's in our constitution. But then you have to get be very granular about what's going to happen on the battlefield

because they're the the two issues Americans care about are their prosperity and their safety. So if the if if the two things that Silicon Valley

has to figure out is is what are we going to how are we going to ethically talk about what's going to happen to our economy in my view you have you could

create a lot of prosperity with trade shaped people. Uh, okay. But what is

shaped people. Uh, okay. But what is going to happen to the white collar workers? And what are we going to do?

workers? And what are we going to do?

That that's one issue. And then we we're not going to agree, but we have to have something like a we're going to do these initiatives just like Hollywood did. And

then you're going to have to have a discussion on the battlefield where you know the rebuttable presumption meaning it doesn't happen is that the we are

going to do the maximal amount to make sure our war fighters come home safely.

And if you are sitting in Silicon Valley making an argument that somehow would evviscerate that or conversely you're not able to understand what Silicon Valley is saying. Meaning there's going

to have to be a medium without going into details on all these breakdowns cuz I was in the middle of it and I want to stay in the middle of it. There there

are substantive issues and there are cultural issues.

>> If we could get rid of the cultural misunderstanding, we could get pretty close to agreements here. Yeah. But you

you're dealing with worlds that never ever ever talk. Yes.

>> And don't have an ability to talk to each other.

>> Yeah. Well, and you've been building a bridge between these cultures for 20 years. I mean, that's what's so

years. I mean, that's what's so interesting. I mean, that's in some ways

interesting. I mean, that's in some ways why we have this conference is to bring together people who speak two different languages, very different value sets, and try to get them aligned. I I'd love your advice for these founders who maybe are new. You know, it's sort of like

are new. You know, it's sort of like that meme, the first time meme uh with Cohen Brothers film, you know, where it's like a lot of these people are having their first conversations with the Department of War or they don't or they maybe they don't have any family in the military, maybe they've met never

met a war fighter. What is your advice to some of these CEOs who are maybe new to these conversations that you've been having for for 20 years now?

>> Well, the best thing you could do is go to Iowa or go to a base and have a like I don't think look put this way um maybe

the first time It's probably not PG, but you know, I'm happily not married, not divorced, so don't follow how I live. But you don't

have to. Maybe if you're going to meet

have to. Maybe if you're going to meet somebody, you really want to oppress it.

Maybe not. Maybe you have an advantage if it's your third girlfriend or boyfriend, not your first. Like, go have a conversation with somebody. Like if

you're going to meet a general or somebody like that and you've never talked to somebody who's actually done something on the battlefield or someone who has family who's done something on

the battlefield and you don't have any and because of that you don't have an ability to empathize with their perspective that's probably a huge mistake.

>> Yeah.

>> And I that's probably going to backfire.

Last secondly though you have to be honest aware about where your aptitude is. Mhm.

is. Mhm.

>> Like you know um Silicon Valley tech builders broadly defined hardware, software, AI. I would say we build in

software, AI. I would say we build in the military context uh essentially uh software scaffolding much more like in a weird way more more like hardware

software but it's in software uh managing LLMs. Um uh it it is the single biggest mistake people make in this area

is because they're intelligent in one area, they assume they're intelligent in all areas. And a big failure mechanism

all areas. And a big failure mechanism in the valley is every valley person is forced to present as if they're the smartest in all areas at all times.

>> And that's like if you don't know who the mark is, you're the mark.

>> Yeah. Like if you think you're the smartest. So I I'm dyslexic and I think

smartest. So I I'm dyslexic and I think one of the reasons I've done so well is I do think I'm one of the better people at certain things. At least I believe it and I know I'm not at everything. It's a

very small it's like but a failure mode for the valley is I'm the smartest on every issue. I for example I need to be

every issue. I for example I need to be the person negotiating this contract.

Yeah.

>> What if you have no aptitude for that?

Mhm.

>> Just because you can do X does not mean you've imputed high aptitude at Y. In

fact, it's very unlikely it's true.

>> Yeah.

>> It's it's almost certain that you're just not smart enough to realize how bad you are.

>> That's probably one of the most important lessons for for company builders in the room. I actually I I want to um end the conversation on Palunteer is the OG American Dynamism company. Um I think a lot of our

company. Um I think a lot of our founders in this room are indebted.

They've worked for you. They've um you know built their playbooks inside of Palunteer. They've built new companies

Palunteer. They've built new companies that, you know, are are epic in their own right, but they started at Palanteer in many cases. And so I want to dive into you. You brought up the neurode

into you. You brought up the neurode divergent fellowship. It's one of my

divergent fellowship. It's one of my favorite things you've ever done. You've

done a lot of great things, but I think it's it's one of the most extraordinary um stands that you've taken in the company, but you've always looked for people who are different and somehow cultivated them and brought together

people who are Democrats, Republicans, on the right, on the left, people who are of all walks of life. How do you lead such a diverse group of people especially at scale like at the scale

you are?

>> Well, I mean it's always hard to know when you're re like I I I view myself as an artist. So, you're really, it's like,

an artist. So, you're really, it's like, well, how do you create the art? And

it's funny because I I mean, I look, I I like the freedom money gives me, and I I certainly don't want to like do some [ __ ] philanthropy to prove that I'm good when because I did something bad

because I think what we do is very important. Um, but it's like at the end

important. Um, but it's like at the end of the day, it's like an artistic thing.

But, you know, I had it's always helpful. I had my parents are among the

helpful. I had my parents are among the most talented people I've ever met and I feel they don't agree with me that you know like they should have they could

like it's kind of weird I'm so famous put it that way from and uh um I uh um

uh I I and I then there's the American thing where we are I really believe in the magical liberating, inalienable right for all of

us to be individuals. And that's what I see as particularly moral and special in the world. I don't like these things

the world. I don't like these things that like I I've been famously anti-woke, but in the thing I find offensive about it is actually that it's

people pretending to be different while all being the same. And so I don't like uh so I tend to gravitate towards people who are unique and yeah, I don't really

care. their politics. I care about like

care. their politics. I care about like their ability to think and do. Um there

is an aptitude thing where can you recognize somebody who is truly unique in something you've not done yourself is

just something you're born with. Um I I do think it's a form of neurode divergence like outlier IQ is a the certain way it's not that different than being autistic. like you just can't

being autistic. like you just can't you're not going to you're not going to decomp a problem the way somebody who is all just normal smart will.

>> Um and I find that very very charismatic. The trick to doing it is

charismatic. The trick to doing it is you have to it's this very hard thing where somebody who is the best I I believe the palunteerians

while managed a palunteer and sometimes in many and most cases presumably after a palunteer I am helping them to express something that only they can do at that

moment and if you look at our products and what we've done it is actually true even what we're doing in in like right now all across the Middle East and obviously ly in America, each single product at each single part was built by

the one person in the world that could have done it. But that and then I have to somehow get them to do things that they don't actually think are valuable but on their terms. And that's basically

my job because at that level of aptitude, you can't just say do this idiot because they're like why would I do that? You're the idiot. Uh and so um

do that? You're the idiot. Uh and so um and and then what I think is very special about the Palunteerians, ex-punteerians and current Palunteerians

is when you're at Palunteer, you're not learning to to actually follow my playbook.

>> You're learning to follow your playbook where I'm inserting some things that may not have occurred to you. Maybe you

don't know I'm doing that to make sure that your playbook gets rid of your dyslexia. Basically, I'm

dyslexia. Basically, I'm anti-dislexifying your playbook.

>> It but around you. And if you take like the I don't know, there's so many really important expentiterians. What you'll

important expentiterians. What you'll see is they're a kind of classic people and they're not going to build the same company Palanteer was. They're also not going to build the same company of the

next person as Palanteer. And that's why they play such a disproportional role.

And at the end of the day, that's why Poundier is like playing such a big role because like Foundry, PG, Apollo, Ontology, uh the management of Ontology,

Maven, which is like you know, we've just like been able to target in a way no other country can. It's like the other countries are like what the happened here like we were thinking

Afghanistan like what is this? meaning

our retreat like meaning and like like America has reestablished a terrence.

>> That actually just happened. It's

happened in the last year.

>> Like that right, left, center, I don't care what party you're in in private.

Obviously, you can't say this in public.

In private, that is a phenomenal asset that America now has that it did not have. And there are lots of reasons for

have. And there are lots of reasons for it, but a one maybe not the most important is a concatenation of the most unusual in some cases otherwise maybe

not fully functional talent built around building something that was a absolutely scandalous unpopular dream rejected by many people called Maven.

And that's how this country and by the way if we are going to outperform the rest of the world uh our single

advantage is to augment neurodeivergent highly individual people to be their absolutely unique best and protect their

first second fourth and fifth amendment rights so that they don't get screwed.

>> Absolutely. Well, again, the OG American Dynamism founder, thank you so much for all you've done for the country.

>> Thank you.