Calls grow to ban Palantir in Australia after manifesto described by UK MP as ‘ramblings of a supervillain’

Spy tech firm says it’s just ‘a software company’ amid pressure for a ban on new contracts with government agencies

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Just weeks after it implied some cultures are inferior to others in a manifesto described by one UK MP as the “ramblings of a supervillain”, the US spy tech company Palantir says it is just “a software company” amid calls for Australian government agencies to ban any new contracts with the controversial company.

In Australia, state and federal contracts with Palantir have reached nearly $80m, and federal investment in the company is reportedly more than $160m.