Palantir, a US data analytics company initially backed by In-Q-Tel, the CIA's venture capital arm, now plays a central role in the NHS's £330 million Federated Data Platform. Supporters argue it could enhance planning and efficiency, but critics question governance, transparency, and trust. Here is an in-depth look at the company and its involvement.
What is Palantir and what does it do?
Palantir is a major American technology firm specialising in storing large datasets and providing tools to manage them, including artificial intelligence for querying data. Its platforms, such as Foundry, help government organisations and businesses uncover patterns, manage operations, and support decision-making. The company's chairman, Peter Thiel, is known for controversial views, including a 2023 statement at the Oxford Union that the NHS makes people ill and should be privatised.
Why is a private American company involved in managing NHS medical records?
Palantir views itself as providing a platform for the NHS to store and analyse its own medical records, not as managing them directly. This is not exceptional, as much societal data is stored on cloud platforms from US companies like Microsoft, Google, or Amazon. The debate centres on whether Palantir is less trustworthy than these other providers.
Who awarded the contract, and was it competitively tendered?
The governments of Boris Johnson (2020) and Rishi Sunak (2023) awarded Palantir contracts. In early 2020, Palantir offered to build a COVID-19 data store for £1 under emergency procurement rules without open competition. This initial three-month contract was only made public under legal pressure and was renewed for £23 million, again without evidence of competition. The latest Federated Data Platform contract was awarded competitively in December 2023 to a Palantir-led consortium, but prior involvement gave Palantir a significant advantage—a phenomenon known as vendor lock-in.
Can Palantir use patient data for its own purposes or share it with the US government?
Palantir acts as a data processor, legally allowed only to follow instructions from data controllers (NHS organisations). However, there is grey area regarding what is necessary to provide services under the agreement. Some claim this includes using NHS data for AI models, but the original contract does not clearly support this. In the publicly available version of the latest contract, nearly all data protection text is redacted. While UK regulators like the Information Commissioner's Office have oversight, critics question how effectively large multinational tech providers can be audited. Under the US Cloud Act, American authorities can request data from US-based companies under certain legal conditions, raising privacy concerns.
What is the Federated Data Platform and its purpose for the NHS?
NHS England has long aimed for a central repository of all NHS data. This was rapidly realised during COVID-19 under special legislation in two forms: the NHS COVID-19 Data Store (which evolved into the Federated Data Platform for planning) and OpenSafely (for research with strong privacy protections).
Has the system improved NHS care, and is it value for money?
The UK government claims significant improvements from Palantir's involvement, but researchers have questioned the research methods used to quantify successes and noted personal connections among those involved. Eerke Boiten, Professor of Cybersecurity at De Montfort University, authored this analysis, originally published in The Conversation.
What is Palantir's track record with other clients?
Palantir initially funded by In-Q-Tel, works with US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), criticised by civil liberties groups. It also works with the UK army and reportedly provided AI-based targeting for the Israeli army in Gaza, prompting Amnesty International to campaign against Palantir's NHS contract.
Can patients opt out of data sharing?
Patients can opt out of GP practice data sharing or NHS England data sharing for research and planning. However, this reduces dataset comprehensiveness and representativeness, potentially harming beneficial uses of health data, which is why the medical community worries about the Palantir effect.
Why are doctors, nurses, and campaigners opposed?
Concerns include Palantir's political positioning against the NHS, controversial views from its leaders, technological risks of concentrating data processing with a single supplier, and moral objections to its work with ICE and in Gaza.
Could the government cancel the contract, and what happens to the data?
The current contract includes a break clause, allowing cancellation. Palantir must lose all data access when the contract ends. Responding to MP Wendy Morton's call for scrutiny, Palantir UK's executive vice-chair, Louis Mosley, told the BBC that the firm welcomes scrutiny and delivers value for money. He stated Palantir has no interest in patient data, comparing its role to that of Microsoft Excel or Word—NHS data remains under NHS control.
