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For all you backend engineers: It’s basically Grafana with a bunch of support engineers in the backend cleaning up the data source (like a splunk index) that fe

For all you backend engineers: It’s basically Grafana with a bunch of support engineers in the backend cleaning up the data source (like a splunk index) that feeds it. Palantir does UI and visualization well but needs an inordinate amount of field support engineers to groom the dirty disparate data that governments do a poor job cleaning (either due to incompetence, field conditions, or both). The amount of manual labor doesn’t justify its market price, but because governments rarely change their vendors, there is significant lock in that probably supports some amount of their market cap.

nxobject 2y ago
I imagine back in the LBJ and Nixon days IBM would've been doing similar classified work.
JumpCrisscross 2y ago
> needs an inordinate amount of field support engineers Hey now, they're forward-deployed engineers. Nothing like Oracle or SAP consultants.
- master_crab 2y ago
  Touché
- throwup238 2y ago
  Do they dig latrines too? “Forward deployed” sounds like they’re in a FOB out in the sticks somewhere.
okino 2y ago
Leaving this here for people interested in what the software actually is. https://www.palantir.com/docs/ https://www.palantir.com/docs/
Taikonerd 2y ago
But they have 80% margin, according to the article... so those engineers are generating a lot of revenue per capita.
- JumpCrisscross 2y ago
  > they have 80% margin, according to the article I have a pet theory about private equity: they're in the business of laundering boring jobs for college graduates. Few kids dream of graduating college to work at a chemicals plant in Baton Rouge. But working for Accenture in New York or Atlanta, now that's sexy. Even if you spend your entire work week *checks notes* working at a chemicals plant in Baton Rouge. (Investment banking is similar, though the transaction orientation makes the division of labour a little more sensible.) Palantir pays less for its consultants (sorry, FDEs) than Bain et al. Few in their generation dreamed of graduating college to work at a soulless corporate consultancy. But a tech company, now that's sexy. More pointedly: It's remarkable how an ostensibly 80% GM business only barely became profitable last year. Palantir's Q2 '24 cash flows from operations at 40% of revenues looks closer to the mark [1]. (Palantir's cost of revenue "primarily includes salaries, stock-based compensation expense, and benefits for personnel involved in performing [operations & maintenance] and professional services, as well as field service representatives, third-party cloud hosting services, travel costs, allocated overhead, and other direct costs" [2].) [1] https://www.sec.gov/ix?doc=/Archives/edgar/data/0001321655/000132165524000135/pltr-20240630.htm https://www.sec.gov/ix?doc=/Archives/edgar/data/0001321655/0... [2] https://www.sec.gov/ix?doc=/Archives/edgar/data/0001321655/000132165524000022/pltr-20231231.htm https://www.sec.gov/ix?doc=/Archives/edgar/data/0001321655/0...
  - OisinMoran 2y ago
    I like this theory! And I don't think it's a cynical one either—this "laundering" could actually be really useful. The worker gets the status and security of a tech/consulting job, while having more variety than actually working at the chemical plant, not being at the whims of their org chart, and also just the reframing probably makes it more enjoyable anyway. All the while, the important work is getting done.
    - JumpCrisscross 2y ago
      I don't think it's cynical at all! I do think it's a decision-delaying choice, however, in that it treats one's work as a series of electives. The person working at the plant, gaining seniority and building deep connections is on their way to industry expertise. It's trading wealth and power for prestige. (It makes sense it's like catnip to our graduates from elite schools.)
deleted 2y ago
[deleted]
kidros 2y ago
This is such a hilarious oversimplification.
itsoktocry 2y ago
>inordinate amount of field support engineers to groom the dirty disparate data that governments do a poor job cleaning Getting clean data seems like a universal need, but the job is still difficult, under-appreciated and underpaid. How come?
ilrwbwrkhv 2y ago
Grafana is a better approximation. I used to say back in the day that Peter Thiel complains about no flying cars but is making a data ingesting platform with a Chart Js frontend.
- BlueTemplar 2y ago
  And yet at the same time I can totally see how it would feel like science fiction to a cop : https://logicmag.io/commons/enter-the-dragnet/ https://logicmag.io/commons/enter-the-dragnet/ (And a very different kind of science fiction for a non-cop.)

nxobject 2y ago

I imagine back in the LBJ and Nixon days IBM would've been doing similar classified work.

JumpCrisscross 2y ago

> needs an inordinate amount of field support engineers Hey now, they're forward-deployed engineers. Nothing like Oracle or SAP consultants.

master_crab 2y ago
Touché
throwup238 2y ago
Do they dig latrines too? “Forward deployed” sounds like they’re in a FOB out in the sticks somewhere.

okino 2y ago

Leaving this here for people interested in what the software actually is. https://www.palantir.com/docs/ https://www.palantir.com/docs/

Taikonerd 2y ago

But they have 80% margin, according to the article... so those engineers are generating a lot of revenue per capita.

JumpCrisscross 2y ago
> they have 80% margin, according to the article I have a pet theory about private equity: they're in the business of laundering boring jobs for college graduates. Few kids dream of graduating college to work at a chemicals plant in Baton Rouge. But working for Accenture in New York or Atlanta, now that's sexy. Even if you spend your entire work week *checks notes* working at a chemicals plant in Baton Rouge. (Investment banking is similar, though the transaction orientation makes the division of labour a little more sensible.) Palantir pays less for its consultants (sorry, FDEs) than Bain et al. Few in their generation dreamed of graduating college to work at a soulless corporate consultancy. But a tech company, now that's sexy. More pointedly: It's remarkable how an ostensibly 80% GM business only barely became profitable last year. Palantir's Q2 '24 cash flows from operations at 40% of revenues looks closer to the mark [1]. (Palantir's cost of revenue "primarily includes salaries, stock-based compensation expense, and benefits for personnel involved in performing [operations & maintenance] and professional services, as well as field service representatives, third-party cloud hosting services, travel costs, allocated overhead, and other direct costs" [2].) [1] https://www.sec.gov/ix?doc=/Archives/edgar/data/0001321655/000132165524000135/pltr-20240630.htm https://www.sec.gov/ix?doc=/Archives/edgar/data/0001321655/0... [2] https://www.sec.gov/ix?doc=/Archives/edgar/data/0001321655/000132165524000022/pltr-20231231.htm https://www.sec.gov/ix?doc=/Archives/edgar/data/0001321655/0...
- OisinMoran 2y ago
  I like this theory! And I don't think it's a cynical one either—this "laundering" could actually be really useful. The worker gets the status and security of a tech/consulting job, while having more variety than actually working at the chemical plant, not being at the whims of their org chart, and also just the reframing probably makes it more enjoyable anyway. All the while, the important work is getting done.
  - JumpCrisscross 2y ago
    I don't think it's cynical at all! I do think it's a decision-delaying choice, however, in that it treats one's work as a series of electives. The person working at the plant, gaining seniority and building deep connections is on their way to industry expertise. It's trading wealth and power for prestige. (It makes sense it's like catnip to our graduates from elite schools.)

deleted 2y ago

[deleted]

kidros 2y ago

This is such a hilarious oversimplification.

itsoktocry 2y ago

>inordinate amount of field support engineers to groom the dirty disparate data that governments do a poor job cleaning Getting clean data seems like a universal need, but the job is still difficult, under-appreciated and underpaid. How come?

ilrwbwrkhv 2y ago

Grafana is a better approximation. I used to say back in the day that Peter Thiel complains about no flying cars but is making a data ingesting platform with a Chart Js frontend.

BlueTemplar 2y ago
And yet at the same time I can totally see how it would feel like science fiction to a cop : https://logicmag.io/commons/enter-the-dragnet/ https://logicmag.io/commons/enter-the-dragnet/ (And a very different kind of science fiction for a non-cop.)