POLITICO Playbook Podcast: Palantir's Alex Karp Courts a Democratic Congress With Jon Tester at His Side

On The Playbook Podcast, Palantir CEO Alex Karp told POLITICO's Adam Wren he has been a Democrat his whole life and called the company's products progressive, as former Sen. Jon Tester advises the firm ahead of a Democratic Congress. Tester said Palantir should be transparent and forthright if called before a Senate committee.

Nov 12, 2026 - 16:16

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Palantir CEO and co-founder Alex Karp said he has "been a Democrat my whole life" and described the company's products as "essentially progressive" in an interview with POLITICO Playbook co-author Adam Wren that aired on The Playbook Podcast on Thursday, Nov. 12, 2026. The episode, titled "Big Tech pivots left," also featured former Montana Sen. Jon Tester, who is advising the company, and was published at 10 a.m. UTC on Nov. 12, according to its Apple Podcasts listing.

The episode was a crossover with POLITICO's Decoded podcast. Wren introduced it alongside Calder McHugh, co-author of Decoded by POLITICO, saying the conversation covered why Karp considers himself a progressive despite his ties to MAGA Inc. and the Trump administration, how the two men are sizing up a new Democratic Congress "with big tech in the crosshairs," and what message the midterms sent to Silicon Valley, according to an episode transcript.

Tester's advisory role

Wren said on the podcast that Palantir is "taking stock" of last week's midterm elections and has hired Tester to advise it as it navigates "stiffer regulatory winds in Washington," adding that Tester is not lobbying. Wren also noted that Palantir employs former Wisconsin Republican Rep. Mike Gallagher as its head of defense.

NPR, which first reported the hire on Nov. 9, said tech companies are expecting scrutiny from Democrats when they take over Congress in January and that many are hiring former Democratic lawmakers and aides. "My agreement with Palantir is advisory in nature, it is not lobbying," Tester, who lost reelection in 2024, told NPR.

Tester told Montana Free Press that his role entails "consulting as needed" and declined to share his compensation. He dismissed the idea that the hire was a response to the election results, saying Palantir first approached him in July. The outlet reported that Maritsa Georgiou, who co-hosted the podcast "Grounded" with Tester, announced he would no longer be part of the show.

Karp on his political giving

In a clip played on the episode, Wren asked Karp about his donations to MAGA Inc. and the White House ballroom. "My giving is equal Democrat, Republican," Karp said. "I'm also not the village idiot. Of course I give to everybody." Wren said on the podcast that the MAGA Inc. contribution was about $1 million and that Karp repeatedly deferred political questions, including about Pete Hegseth at the Defense Department, where Palantir has contracts at stake, to Tester.

McHugh said Karp, who holds a Ph.D. and has studied political thought, has associated himself much more with the Republican Party over the last couple of years and has spent time criticizing Democrats. Wren said that when he asked Karp about New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, whom Karp had criticized in the past, Karp did not discuss Mamdani and instead criticized the Democratic Socialists of America.

Scrutiny from a Democratic Congress

Asked what he would advise Karp and the company if they are called before a Senate committee, Tester said: "Be transparent. Be forthright. Address the questions straight up. Be respectful to the folks who are asking you questions." He added that lawmakers' job is "to be a check and balance on the administration" and that Palantir has "a great story to tell."

Karp said, "I grew up in a far left environment. I know more about being a progressive than almost anybody on the planet." He said no product "will enforce transparency and lack of corruption like our products" and that he respects "the right and duty of congressional leaders to do their jobs."

Wren said on the podcast that Palantir donations became a flashpoint in several Democratic primaries and that some of the company's most controversial products involve surveillance and tracking. He noted that Tester voted against the Patriot Act on civil liberties grounds. McHugh cited the New York 12th District primary, where he said former Palantir employee Alex Bores was attacked in ads over his work at the company and lost.

Democrats pressed the company's government work earlier this year. In April, Reps. John Garamendi, Dan Goldman and Nydia Velázquez and Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon demanded answers from the Department of Homeland Security and Immigration and Customs Enforcement about their use of Palantir-developed technologies, according to a release from Garamendi's office. NPR reported that Palantir said it is "neither conducting nor enabling mass surveillance of American citizens," and that Wyden's staff said he intends to ask his questions again as chairman of the Finance Committee. "If Palantir is not responsive next year, compulsory processes will be on the table," Wyden's staff said, according to NPR.

NPR reported that Palantir holds $2 billion worth of federal contracts, most of them with the departments of Defense, Homeland Security and State. Tester told NPR that Palantir does not build "big databases" or trade in private data.

Affordability and 2028

Asked what message voters sent to big tech companies, Karp said artificial intelligence is producing "a revolution that is making people like me potentially 20 times richer," and added, "Go explain to the American people why that's justified. You can't." He said some people, "mostly on the right, believe capitalism will solve all problems," and that he has never believed that. "I think every election we have is going to be a referendum on that," he said.

Wren said on the podcast that Karp is a registered voter in New Hampshire, where he lives on a 500-acre compound in a rural town, and that technocratic Democrats such as Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, Pete Buttigieg, Maryland Gov. Wes Moore and Rahm Emanuel could draw his interest ahead of 2028. Wren said the full conversation with Karp and Tester is available on POLITICO's YouTube channel.