Alex Karp Net Worth

What is Alex Karp's net worth?

Alex Karp is an American businessman who has a net worth of $14 billion. Alex Karp is the co-founder and CEO of Palantir Technologies, one of the most influential and controversial data analytics companies in the world. Known for his eccentric public persona, contrarian views, and fierce devotion to civil liberties, Karp has guided Palantir from a stealth startup into a global powerhouse serving U.S. intelligence agencies, defense departments, public health systems, and Fortune 500 companies. Under his leadership, the company has become a critical player in geopolitics, artificial intelligence, and government technology.

Early Life and Education

Born in New York City and raised in Philadelphia, Karp developed an early fascination with philosophy and law. He earned his undergraduate degree from Haverford College and went on to receive a J.D. from Stanford Law School. While at Stanford, he met fellow student and PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel, who would later back Palantir. Karp also earned a Ph.D. in neoclassical social theory from Goethe University in Frankfurt, a background that shaped his unique intellectual approach to business and ethics. Fluent in German and an admirer of Enlightenment thinkers, Karp remains deeply philosophical, often invoking Nietzsche and Kant in shareholder letters and public commentary.

Founding and Growing Palantir

Karp co-founded Palantir Technologies in 2003 with Peter Thiel and a group of engineers aiming to build advanced data integration tools for the U.S. government. The company's original mission was to help intelligence agencies combat terrorism while protecting civil liberties. Its first and most influential product, Gotham, became a core analytics platform for the CIA, FBI, NSA, and the Department of Defense. A second platform, Foundry, extended Palantir's reach into the private sector—especially in finance, healthcare, and energy.

Palantir's software excels at integrating vast datasets and making them usable for mission-critical decisions, from battlefield logistics to pandemic response. Karp has publicly stated that Palantir's role is to "defend the West" and has refused to work with authoritarian regimes or adversaries of the U.S., a position that has won praise in some circles and criticism in others.

Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images

Financial Success and Equity Holdings

Palantir went public via a direct listing in September 2020. Since then, the company's valuation has fluctuated dramatically, but Karp has reaped enormous personal gains. According to Palantir's 2025 proxy statement, Karp directly owns approximately 2.5% of the company across Class A, B, and F shares. He also holds 16.8 million vested and exercisable options as of May 14, 2025.

Since the IPO, Karp has sold more than $3 billion worth of Palantir stock, according to SEC Form 4 filings. Despite those liquidations, he retains significant control due to Palantir's multi-class voting structure, which allows founding executives to maintain influence over company direction even as their economic stakes shrink.

Leadership Style and Public Persona

Karp is unlike any other tech CEO. He shuns tech conferences, avoids social media, and delivers quarterly earnings calls from rural New Hampshire, often clad in ski gear or speaking from wooded trails. He is known to practice martial arts and cross-country skiing in his spare time and has made a point of living far from Silicon Valley.

His shareholder letters read more like political essays than corporate updates—blending references to European philosophy, historical conflicts, and critiques of short-termism. While many executives strive for a polished public image, Karp leans into his idiosyncrasies, portraying himself as a reluctant capitalist steering Palantir through morally complex territory.

Geopolitical and Global Influence

Palantir has played a high-profile role in recent international crises. The company's software has been deployed in Ukraine to support logistics and battlefield intelligence against Russian forces. It has also worked with the U.K.'s NHS and several European governments on COVID-19 response and healthcare optimization.

These projects have drawn scrutiny from privacy advocates, but Karp has repeatedly argued that responsible software use by democratic governments is essential to counterbalance the rise of authoritarian surveillance states. Palantir's growing portfolio of military and civilian clients—including NATO partners, homeland security, and Fortune 100 companies—continues to expand under Karp's leadership.

Who's Richer?

Alex
Karp

Compare!

Joe
Lonsdale