Palantir scores $34M order for Army data platform

WASHINGTON — Palantir Technologies recently received a $34 million order supporting the modernization of a military network used to relay information across the globe.

The Army Intelligence Data Platform deal includes software, training, cybersecurity activities and help with testing and initial standup of the capability, the Program Executive Office for Intelligence, Electronic Warfare and Sensors said in an announcement Feb. 22.

The award signals the next step for what was once known as the the Distributed Common Ground System Capability Drop 2.

“The AIDP is designed for deployment on a scalable infrastructure that can be tailored to support commanders and warfighters at all echelons,” the Army’s Project Manager Intelligence Systems and Analytics said in a statement. “It serves as the Army’s primary interface to the Intelligence Community (IC) data fabric for both publishing and consuming IC products, and the enterprise foundation layer for Army Intelligence.”

The Army Acquisition Support Center describes the Distributed Common Ground System as a means to buttress a commander’s understanding of threats and his or her environment. It consists of both hardware, like laptops, and software, like data filters and analytics.

The Department of Defense in February 2020 named Palantir and BAE Systems as competitors on a $823 million contract to upgrade the Army’s facet of the Distributed Common Ground System. In March 2018, the Defense Department said Palantir and Raytheon would share a $876 million contract for the Distributed Common Ground System-Army Capability Drop 1.