Palantir inks $300 million deal with USDA to safeguard food supply
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palantir announced that it made a $300 million deal with US Department of AgricultureIt will use the software company’s technology to manage farmland as geopolitical risks threaten global supply chains.
The agreement builds on ongoing projects with the USDA and underscores Palantir’s growing role within the US government, moving beyond core defense contracts supporting US military modernization.
U.S. farmers are grappling with rising supply costs and are being squeezed by the ongoing trade war between the United States and its major trading partners. This includes China, a major soybean buyer, which temporarily disrupted the market late last year.
In December, President Donald Trump announced a $12 billion rescue package aimed at helping farmers get dragged into the trade war. However, rising gas prices due to the war in Iran increased the pressure and caused fertilizer costs to rise due to transportation disruptions. This has forced many farmers to rethink the products they produce, putting their supply chains at risk.
China’s purchases of U.S. farmland in recent years have also been the subject of scrutiny from Washington and foreign policy experts.
A. final research note A publication by the Foundation for Defense Democracies recommended that USDA reform reporting requirements be “embedded within the Agricultural Foreign Investment Disclosure Act (AFIDA) to prevent China and other hostile countries from leveraging commercial land transactions to gain a strategic advantage over the United States.”
USDA’s contract with Palantir signals its desire to solve this problem by leveraging the company’s digital tools.
Palantir was founded in 2003 to boost U.S. defense capabilities in the wake of 9/11, and CEO Alex Karp has long praised the company’s commitment to supporting U.S. warfighters. The company recently became known for its artificial intelligence-supported Maven Smart System platform used by the US army in Iran.
“The fact that you can now target more precisely has changed the way war is fought,” Karp told CNBC. AIPCon In March.
Palantir has also faced harsh criticism over the years for its work with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Department of Homeland Security. reports that his tools were used by him state The company denied the claim that it was used to spy on Americans.
Karp did not hesitate to address these allegations or go after short sellers who bet against the stock. After a historic rally that sent shares more than 25x higher from 2022 to the end of 2025, Palantir shares are down 18% so far this year.
Famous short seller Michael Burry has been betting against the company since the fall of 2025 and says it is “overvalued.”
“I think this behavior is egregious, and I will stick around when it is proven wrong,” Karp said of short sellers in November.
WRISTWATCH: Alex Karp explains Palantir’s role in modern warfare:
