The Department of National Defence gave Palantir an almost $14.4-million contract to use its software for data processing and analytics, according to documents tabled in Parliament this week.

The federal government signed the deal with Palantir’s Canadian subsidiary in March 2020, but had not previously disclosed it. National Defence used Palantir’s software for “information sharing, processing and data management,” it said in response to a question registered by a Member of Parliament in the House of Commons. 

Palantir, which is headquartered in Denver, is a major contractor to the U.S. government. Last month, it signed a deal with the U.S. Army that could be worth up to US$10 billion over the next decade. The Trump administration is reportedly using Palantir to manage and share data within and between departments, which has prompted surveillance concerns. Outside its home country, Palantir has also done deals with the British and Israeli militaries.

The March 2020 contract gave National Defence access to Palantir’s Gotham system. The software allows organizations to integrate their datasets so they can analyze information and make decisions, including in combat situations. Palantir had no access to the information processed by its software, the department claimed in response to questions from The Logic. Gotham was only used on data protected on “closed, classified” National Defence networks “within secure facilities,” department spokesperson Andrée-Anne Poulin said. 

Poulin declined to provide details on what information Palantir’s software processed or analyzed, or the terms of the contract, citing “national security reasons.” She claimed an error on the federal Open Government contract listing website led to the lack of disclosure. 

The contract came a few months after Palantir named David MacNaughton president of its Canadian subsidiary. MacNaughton had previously been Ottawa’s ambassador to Washington and an advisor to then-prime minister Justin Trudeau.

In September 2020, the conflict ethics commissioner found MacNaughton had broken conflict-of-interest rules by meeting with senior federal officials to offer Palantir’s services to help with COVID-19 measures. That came after The Logic reported he had said Palantir was working with the federal government and several provinces on their pandemic response.

MacNaughton appears to have recently left the firm; at an April event put on by the Public Policy Forum, he was introduced as the former president of Palantir in Canada. Palantir did not respond to questions about his departure or about the March 2020 contract.

As The Logic first reported, National Defence signed a separate one-year deal with Palantir in March 2019 worth nearly $1 million. The deal was to test the firm’s Gotham software system for the Canadian Special Operations Forces Command. It did not renew that contract.

National Defence also used Palantir’s Foundry software intermittently between May 2022 and March 2024 for “an evaluation activity to assess capabilities related to data processing,” according to its Parliamentary filing.

Human and digital rights organizations have criticized Palantir for its work with U.S. police forces, as well as immigration enforcement and intelligence agencies. The firm says its technology preserves privacy and civil liberties. 

Palantir reported a US$546-million profit on almost US$1.89 billion in revenue in the first six months of 2025. Its stock was up nearly 121 per cent this year through Wednesday, as investors bet it would capitalize on growing commercial AI demand and government spending.

The firm, which was founded in 2003 by Trump ally Peter Thiel, has publicly tied itself to the U.S. economic and security agenda. “We still believe America is the leader of the free world, that the West is superior, that we have to fight for these values,” Palantir CEO Alex Karp said on an August earnings call. The firm wants U.S. corporations and the U.S. government to have “an unfair advantage,” he added. This spring, Palantir CTO Shyam Sankar joined a special U.S. Army unit for tech executives. 

Update: This story has been updated with comment from the Department of National Defence and more details on its use of Palantir’s Gotham and Foundry.