Palantir will have to go through the same Challenge Book process as the rest of industry for any new role in the Digital Targeting Web, Luke Pollard, Minister for Defence Readiness and Industry, has said, according to an answer given in Parliament.
Ben Obese-Jecty, the Conservative MP for Huntingdon, asked whether Palantir is required to engage with the programme via the Challenge Book for future applications.
Pollard said:
“In the answer I provided to the hon. Member on 26th October 2026 to question 36644 I stated that the process for industry to engage with the Digital Targeting Web is via the Challenge Book (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/digital-targeting-web-challenge-book-2026). This will be the case for any new capability, digital or data service that might eventually form part of the Digital Targeting Web and will apply across industry, including Palantir.”
Pollard said last month that Palantir products are used in the defence digital and data ecosystem and are expected to continue “in some form”, but that no decisions have been made on their future use for the targeting web.
The Ministry of Defence intends to invest up to £1.8 billion over four years in the programme, which aims to connect sensors, decision-making and weapons so a target found by one platform can be engaged by another. The department signed a strategic partnership with Palantir in September 2025.
