Spain Bars Palantir From State-Linked Firms Over Data Sovereignty Fears

Madrid has begun ordering companies under the state holding company SEPI to stop signing new contracts with Palantir, the U.S. data-analytics and AI firm, citing fears that classified national-security data could be misused. The directive from the prime minister’s office reaches heavyweight players in state communications and military intelligence — Telefónica, Indra, and shipbuilder Navantia — and has already killed an almost-finalized Navantia deal and a Guardia Civil collaboration that the interior minister personally vetoed.

The move fits a wider European retreat from the company: France said in June it would stop working with Palantir, and German security services are steering toward European options such as ChaosVision. Politics is clearly part of the calculus — Palantir’s Peter Thiel and Alex Karp are closely tied to Donald Trump, whose incoming administration is at odds with Pedro Sánchez’s government. Spain is meanwhile pouring money into home-grown alternatives, including a €115 million stake in Catalan chipmaker Openchip as part of a €5 billion state-backed gigafactory push.

The blacklist has a notable carve-out: Palantir still holds a €16.5 million contract with the armed forces’ CIFAS intelligence center, expiring in November. Senior military brass are lobbying the defense minister to renew it, arguing no domestic tool matches its capabilities, while Moncloa has yet to rule on the extension — leaving the defense procurement question unresolved as the deadline nears.