US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has partnered with Palantir Technologies to build an artificial intelligence platform to identify, track, and deport suspected noncitizens. The system, called ImmigrationOS, will be delivered in prototype form by September 25, 2025, with the contract running through September 2027. ICE is paying the Denver-based company $30 million for the platform.
ImmigrationOS will combine data from multiple government databases, detect patterns, and flag individuals meeting certain criteria for enforcement. According to government documents, the platform will have three main components: targeting and enforcement prioritization, self-deportation tracking, and immigration lifecycle management.
Civil liberties and labor rights groups have raised concerns over ImmigrationOS, arguing that AI-driven enforcement could result in errors with serious consequences, including wrongful deportations. Critics also highlight possible conflicts of interest, as Stephen Miller, the Trump administration’s architect of immigration policy, holds a financial stake in Palantir.
Palantir has maintained that it only builds the tools and does not set enforcement policies. However, technology experts note that system design—such as deciding which data to include, what prompts alerts, and how cases are prioritized—can directly shape outcomes.
The American Immigration Council said, “These systems are far from neutral. They expand surveillance powers with minimal oversight, risk bias in decision-making, and put civil rights at stake. Even small errors in an automated system can deprive people of liberty.”
What is Palantir?
Palantir Technologies was incorporated in Silicon Valley in 2003 and co-founded by Peter Thiel. The company initially focused on counterterrorism software, receiving early investment from In-Q-Tel, the CIA’s venture capital arm. Its platforms are designed to analyze large volumes of data, identify patterns, and produce actionable intelligence.
Palantir’s two main products are Foundry and Gotham. Foundry integrates and visualizes data from sources such as tax records and biometrics, while Gotham is used by law enforcement and the military to map links between people, places, and events.
Since 2013, ICE has used Palantir systems like FALCON and Investigative Case Management for workplace raids, asylum investigations, and large-scale enforcement actions. Public records show Palantir has received more than $900 million in federal contracts since Trump took office.
Oversight and risks
Advocates argue that safeguards such as independent audits, clear appeal processes, and regular bias testing must be mandatory for platforms like ImmigrationOS. They warn that expanding the range of data used by AI enforcement tools increases accuracy only at the cost of privacy.
Some Palantir engineers have also voiced unease over designing systems that could enable mass surveillance. Critics stress that without strict oversight, such platforms risk shifting the balance from protecting civil liberties to undermining them.
As ImmigrationOS takes shape, questions remain over how the system will be monitored, what limits will be set on its use, and who decides how its rules are applied.
ImmigrationOS will combine data from multiple government databases, detect patterns, and flag individuals meeting certain criteria for enforcement. According to government documents, the platform will have three main components: targeting and enforcement prioritization, self-deportation tracking, and immigration lifecycle management.
Civil liberties and labor rights groups have raised concerns over ImmigrationOS, arguing that AI-driven enforcement could result in errors with serious consequences, including wrongful deportations. Critics also highlight possible conflicts of interest, as Stephen Miller, the Trump administration’s architect of immigration policy, holds a financial stake in Palantir.
Palantir has maintained that it only builds the tools and does not set enforcement policies. However, technology experts note that system design—such as deciding which data to include, what prompts alerts, and how cases are prioritized—can directly shape outcomes.
The American Immigration Council said, “These systems are far from neutral. They expand surveillance powers with minimal oversight, risk bias in decision-making, and put civil rights at stake. Even small errors in an automated system can deprive people of liberty.”
What is Palantir?
Palantir Technologies was incorporated in Silicon Valley in 2003 and co-founded by Peter Thiel. The company initially focused on counterterrorism software, receiving early investment from In-Q-Tel, the CIA’s venture capital arm. Its platforms are designed to analyze large volumes of data, identify patterns, and produce actionable intelligence.
Palantir’s two main products are Foundry and Gotham. Foundry integrates and visualizes data from sources such as tax records and biometrics, while Gotham is used by law enforcement and the military to map links between people, places, and events.
Since 2013, ICE has used Palantir systems like FALCON and Investigative Case Management for workplace raids, asylum investigations, and large-scale enforcement actions. Public records show Palantir has received more than $900 million in federal contracts since Trump took office.
Oversight and risks
Advocates argue that safeguards such as independent audits, clear appeal processes, and regular bias testing must be mandatory for platforms like ImmigrationOS. They warn that expanding the range of data used by AI enforcement tools increases accuracy only at the cost of privacy.
Some Palantir engineers have also voiced unease over designing systems that could enable mass surveillance. Critics stress that without strict oversight, such platforms risk shifting the balance from protecting civil liberties to undermining them.
As ImmigrationOS takes shape, questions remain over how the system will be monitored, what limits will be set on its use, and who decides how its rules are applied.
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