Billionaire tech CEO says he’s ‘not thrilled’ with Democratic Party direction, but is ‘voting against Trump’
Karp criticizes the campus protesters for “praying at the altar of a new form of pagan religion” and says liberal progressives like himself should see the superiority of Western values.
Palantir billionaire CEO Alex Karp said this week that he was “not thrilled” with the direction the Democratic Party was taking, but would “still vote against Trump.”
Karp’s remarks were echoed in a Financial Times article published Friday, which questioned whether Silicon Valley tech investors were shifting their support from President Biden to former President Donald Trump ahead of the 2024 presidential election.
“People who are innovative are fleeing. It’s an intellectual mistake that the progressive wing is not engaging,” Karp said. “I’m personally not thrilled with the direction (of the Democratic Party), but how far can they go before I reconsider? I’m voting against Trump.”
Highlighted by the outlet as a “major Biden donor,” Karp appears to share concerns that the Democratic Party’s liberal agenda may be too much for many Americans and Silicon Valley Democrats to bear.
BILLIONAIRE TECH CEO SAYS ENWW IS ‘TOP RISK’ FOR AMERICA
Despite being “not thrilled” with the direction the Democratic Party is taking, Palantir CEO Alex Karp says he will “vote against Trump.” (Getty Images / Getty Images)
“Political correctness within the party is a huge problem, and Democrats can’t yet understand the cost of it,” he added in comments to the outlet.
Karp’s remarks come as a growing number of Democratic lawmakers are calling on Biden to withdraw from the 2024 race.
In recent months, Karp has repeatedly spoken out against progressive activists, describing wokeness as the primary threat to his tech company and America at large earlier this year.
The outspoken leader made the statement on a financial results call in May, noting that his company, which creates data-collection software, had seen strong growth in the recent period because it upholds Western values while other companies and institutions have suffered from adopting a progressive ideology.
“I think the central risk to Palantir, America and the world is a regressive way of thinking that is corrupting and corroding our institutions, that calls itself ‘progressive,’ but in reality – and that is called ‘woke’ – is really a form of pagan religion lite,” Karp said at the time.
“There are a lot of questions about why we are so active in defending Western values, that our belief that the West is a superior way of life and the ways we organize around that are why our products are transformative,” he added.
STUART VARNEY: DEMOCRATS WILL FACE ‘UNHOLY FOG’ IF BIDEN WITHDRAWS
Alex Karp speaks during the AI Expo For National Competitiveness at Walter E. Washington Convention Center on May 7, 2024 in Washington, DC (Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images for Palantir / Getty Images)
Karp continued: “That’s why we have the best people in the world; why a Palantir degree, so to speak, is so much more valuable than an Ivy League degree.”
He went on to claim that “the Ivy Leagues” have “embraced the thin, newly awakened religion that is otherwise seen as an intellectual cause, but in fact is a way of setting things up so that the greatest institutions of our time disappear and become discriminatory dysfunction.”
Karp called Palantir a “counterexample” to companies that have embraced awakening, “I am very proud of the results. We will continue to implement our efforts, particularly in the United States,” he added.
“It’s a real danger to our company, and it’s a real danger to Palantir if we allow – if we don’t discuss – these things,” he said, concluding his remarks.
Karp was quick to denounce anti-Israel agitators who have been active on college campuses across the country since the Oct. 7 attack on Israel by Hamas.
At a Reagan National Defense Forum roundtable last December, Karp called on American companies “As far as I know, only three companies publicly supported Israel on October 7,” he said, citing Palantir, Booz Allen and Anduril Industries.
Addressing business leaders who have dropped the issue, he urged: “We have to do better.”
Students talk to law enforcement during a pro-Palestine protest at the University of Texas at Austin on April 24, 2024, in Austin, Texas. (Brandon Bell/Getty Images / Getty Images)
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
This same month, Palantir announced via social media platform X, that it was prioritizing hiring Jewish students once they graduated.
“Students on campus are terrified and have been instructed by administrators to hide their Judaism. We are launching an initiative for students who, due to anti-Semitism, fear for their safety on campus and must seek refuge outside of traditional institutions of higher education. They are welcome at Palantir, and we are immediately reserving 180 positions for them. More details to follow soon,” the message reads.
Gabriel Hays of Fox News Digital contributed to this report.
