Palantir has won an $800 million contract with the US Army to build a system that helps soldiers fighting in remote areas

Francois Mori/AP

• Palantir won a contract to develop an intelligence system for the U.S. Army that could be worth $800 million, the Washington Post reported on Tuesday.
• This project is for the Distributed Common Ground System, which helps the Army analyze information on movements, terrain, and weather in remote areas.
• This is the first time Palantir is working on a government project that’s part of the congressional budget, called a "defense program of record."

Big data company Palantir won an $800 million contract to develop a battlefield intelligence system for the U.S. Army, the Washington Post reported on Tuesday.

Although Palantir has worked with the government in the past, this is the first time Palantir has been named a "defense program of record," which means that this multi-year project is part of the congressional budget.

“Supporting Soldiers in their critical missions, and making sure they come home safely to their families, is a point of immense pride at Palantir. It’s why we started the company,” Doug Philippone, head of Palantir’s defense business, said in a statement to Business Insider.

This project for the Distributed Common Ground System will help the Army analyze information on movements, terrain, and weather, as well as create real-time maps and reports.

Read more: The CEO of the secretive big-data startup Palantir, which is looking to IPO this year, says he finds out about a stopped terrorist attack once a week

Palantir competed with Raytheon for this contract. The Army tried out both companies’ products before picking a winner. Although Palantir won this contract, it may still compete with Raytheon for future projects in this program, the Washington Post reported.

Palantir is reportedly planning to go public at a valuation of $41 billion as early as this year. Palantir CEO Alex Karp had said its technology has been used in high-stakes missions and can prevent terrorist attacks.

"We look forward to our partnership with the men and women of the U.S. Army and will do everything we can to ensure this technology makes them more successful," Philippone said in a statement.

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Source: Business Insider – rmchan@businessinsider.com (Rosalie Chan)