Palantir has hired former U.S. Senator Jon Tester as an adviser as the software and artificial-intelligence contractor prepares for greater scrutiny from a Democrat-controlled Congress, according to NPR. Tester, a Montana Democrat who served 18 years in the Senate before losing reelection in 2024, said the arrangement is advisory and does not involve lobbying.
The appointment comes as Democratic lawmakers raise questions about Palantir’s work for federal agencies, particularly the Department of Homeland Security. NPR reported that the company holds about $2 billion in federal contracts, with much of that work connected to the departments of Defense and Homeland Security.
Palantir supplies software that helps customers organize and analyze their own information. Critics have argued that its government deployments can contribute to surveillance of migrants and U.S. residents. The company rejects the characterization that it conducts or enables mass surveillance, saying it does not gather or manipulate the underlying information and is committed to privacy and democratic values.
Earlier in 2026, Senator Ron Wyden of Oregon and 30 other Democratic lawmakers sought answers about Palantir’s DHS contracts and whether its tools were being used in federal surveillance efforts. Palantir denied the allegation. Wyden’s staff told NPR that he still had questions and expected to revisit them when Democrats gained committee power, with compulsory processes possible if the company did not respond.
Tester told NPR that Palantir has a case to make in Washington and that he hopes lawmakers will listen. He said his work would focus on efforts to improve government services for farmers and veterans, presenting the technology as a potential way to reduce costs and make agencies function better for the public.
That role also creates a notable contrast with Tester’s record in office. NPR noted that he opposed the post-September 11 PATRIOT Act’s expansion of government powers. His new position puts a former lawmaker known for civil-liberties concerns inside a company whose public-sector data tools are likely to face questions from his former colleagues.
The hire is part of a broader movement among technology companies to bring in Democratic officials and aides ahead of the change in congressional control. Such advisers can explain a company’s work and political environment without necessarily registering as lobbyists, depending on the services they perform. Tester explicitly described his own agreement as non-lobbying.
Palantir’s government relationships are commercially important and politically contentious. Hiring Tester gives it a prominent Democratic voice as congressional investigators assess the contractor’s role. It does not settle the underlying disagreement: lawmakers are demanding more detail about how agency systems are used, while Palantir says responsibility for data and operational decisions remains with its customers.
