Ukraine’s former defence minister had already announced a new fund to invest in battlefield robotics and AI-guided missiles
Mykhailo Fedorov (left) and Alex Karp, the Palantir boss, announced the venture in a video on X Credit: Mykhailo Fedorov/X
Economics Correspondent
Sept 1st, 2026
Alex Karp, the Palantir boss, is backing a new defence tech start-up founded by Ukraine’s recently sacked defence minister.
Mykhailo Fedorov, who has emerged as a challenger to Volodymyr Zelensky, the Ukrainian president, is building a defence tech company with the controversial US tech founder as its lead investor.
Announcing the venture on X, Mr Fedorov said: “We are building our own defence tech company. Alex Karp, CEO of Palantir, will become its first lead investor.
“Our ambitious new project will strengthen Ukraine and help build a safer future for the entire world. More details to come.”
Alex Karp will become the lead investor in the start-up, which Mykhailo Fedorov said would ‘strengthen Ukraine’ Credit: Mykhailo Fedorov/X
Mr Fedorov, 35, was unexpectedly sacked from his role as Ukraine’s defence minister in July after just six months in the post.
He had become widely popular for driving rapid innovation in the country’s use of battlefield technology, such as the use of drones and cyber attacks.
But Mr Fedorov was ousted amid reports of a rift with Oleksandr Syrskyi, the former commander in chief of the Ukrainian armed forces who was sacked in July.
The dismissal of Mr Fedorov triggered a rare outburst of anger in Ukraine and crowds took to the streets to protest against the move.
The former defence minister called for wartime elections last month in what was widely seen as the biggest challenge to Mr Zelensky’s presidency since Vladimir Putin launched his invasion at the start of 2022.
Volodymyr Zelensky’s decision to sack Mykhailo Fedorov triggered a rare outburst of anger in Ukraine Credit: Sergey Dolzhenko/EPA/Shutterstock
Mr Karp, who co-founded Palantir in 2003, has framed the $435bn (£322bn) data-surveillance company as a crucial tool for defending the West.
He has called for universal conscription and the development of AI weapons, and argued that a lack of criticism of other cultures has created a “hollow pluralism” in the West.
The billionaire entrepreneur has also become an outspoken supporter of Donald Trump’s immigration clampdown and Palantir works with US Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers to target people for deportation.
Alex Karp is a strong supporter of Donald Trump Credit: Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images
Speaking to Mr Fedorov in a video posted on X, Mr Karp said: “I have been absolutely inspired by what you and the Ukrainians have pulled off. [I’m] super delighted that we could play a part.
“You and your colleagues are launching a company that I think will be defining the world, bringing your knowledge and acumen about the art of war as a product to allied countries. To the extent I or we can help you, we’ll be very proud to do that.”
It comes after Mr Fedorov announced over the weekend that he was launching a new defence technology investment fund that would invest in Ukrainian defence companies, prioritising battlefield robotics, jet-powered interceptor drones and low-cost AI-guided missiles.
Mr Zelensky’s five-year presidential term technically expired in May 2024 but he has remained as leader of Ukraine because the country has been under martial law since the war began.
Mr Trump has used this as ammunition to criticise the Ukrainian leader, claiming he is “using war” to avoid having to face a vote.
In an explosive video last month, Mr Fedorov complained that Ukraine’s war effort was being undermined by corruption and made a thinly veiled critique of the Ukrainian president’s approach.
Anything that helps Ukraine is of course great, without question.
However, these big tech guys seem to live in a somewhat warped version of the universe.
We have Musk, whose father we subsequently learn is a card-carrying nazi friend of putler who attends Putler’s Nazi conferences. Yet Musk offered to fight putler : winner gets Ukraine. He really said that.
Musk then gave Ukraine access to Starlink FOC, only to use the threat of cutting it off as a weapon. Indeed he once did cut it off to “prevent WW3” ; actually a planned attack on Crimea.
As for Karp, he is a self-described socialist, but a fan of Krasnov. The horseshoe of politics again?
Another director of Palantir is Peter Thiel, who has come out with crass, putlerite statements like : “the relentless NATO expansion might not have been a good idea” …
“As for Karp, he is a self-described socialist”
In earlier profiles (such as a 2018 Wall Street Journal profile), he identified as a socialist and progressive, but he has since moved to the right.
Thing is Larry, like I said, these big tech guys live in a parallel universe. Almost all of them talk crap (some of them kremkrapp), yet they are high iq mega-successful entrepreneurs. I’m trying to find a mega billionaire who is NOT full of crap. It’s a tough job. What is Karp’s true position? It’s hard to know. Thiel is a dangerous fucker, like Muskovy, yet he coexists with Karp. I can’t say I have the answer.
Then we have Zuckerberg, what the fuck does he really think? He was sort of “progressive”, but now he seems to be trumputlerish. Did someone get to him as well?
What is going on with the Dems?
They had a great guy: Alex Vindman. But he was defeated by a socialist.
As Garry Kasparov says : “the answer to fascism can’t be Marxism.”
Comment from :
GRAHAM REEVE
If Fedorov is going to stop throwing his little ego tantrum and go back to helping Ukraine– rather than actively undermining Ukraine– then that is great news… I can’t help however becoming increasingly suspicious of his underlying motivations and whether those are genuinely aligned with the Ukrainian people or elsewhere.
Trevor Smallwood
Whatever the rights and wrongs of Federov and or Zelensky/Ukraine these men demonstrate the inadequacy and damage Putin/Trump and their atrophying leaderships are doing to the world.
Trump and Putin offer no vision to their people except a return to irrelevant old stories. It’s time they were both put out to pasture.