Palantir CEO Alex Karp backs former Ukraine Defense Minister’s new defense tech Startup

Former Ukrainian Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov is launching a defense technology startup with an unusually prominent first backer: Palantir CEO Alex Karp.

Karp will become the venture’s first lead investor, according to Fedorov’s press office. CNBC reported that the investment amount has not been disclosed, and the startup itself remains largely under wraps. Its name, planned products and Karp’s broader role have yet to be revealed.

What is clear is the company’s premise. Fedorov wants to turn lessons learned during Ukraine’s war with Russia into defense technologies Kyiv can deploy and sell to allied countries.

Karp framed the opportunity in even bigger terms.

“You and your colleagues are launching a company that I think will be defining for the world,” Karp said in a video Fedorov posted on X Tuesday.

$PLTR to invest in Mykhailo Fedorov defense company 👀👀👀

KYIV, Sept 1 (Reuters) – Palantir CEO Alex Karp will become the first major investor in a new defence technology company launched by Mykhailo Fedorov, the tech-savvy former Ukrainian defence minister who was dismissed in… https://t.co/PvohfRG6mq pic.twitter.com/CYO9Aht57A

— Mike (@MikeLongTerm) September 1, 2026

Karp said the venture could bring Ukraine’s knowledge and experience of warfare “as a product to allied countries.”

That idea carries weight after more than four years of full-scale war. Ukraine has become a testing ground for drones, autonomous systems, artificial intelligence, electronic warfare and battlefield software, often forcing engineers and military units to adapt technologies in weeks rather than years.

“During the full-scale war, our team gained unique experience working with defense technologies in Ukraine and seeing firsthand how technology is transforming modern warfare,” Fedorov said in a statement.

Turning Ukraine’s battlefield experience into a defense business

The startup could represent something larger than another defense technology company. Ukraine has accumulated operational knowledge under conditions few Western startups or defense contractors can reproduce. Systems have been tested against an active adversary, modified after failures and redeployed as battlefield conditions changed.

Fedorov now appears to see commercial value in that experience.

The 35-year-old former minister has spent years pushing technology deeper into Ukraine’s military operations and cultivated relationships with prominent American technology executives along the way. Since leaving government, he has courted U.S. investors and tech leaders for projects tied to Ukraine’s defense sector.

According to CNBC, his relationship with Karp is particularly significant. Palantir has worked closely with Ukraine during the war, putting its data and artificial intelligence software into areas ranging from battlefield operations to government decision-making. Karp has repeatedly positioned the company as an outspoken supporter of Ukraine and Western defense.

Fedorov’s ambitions extend beyond the new startup. He is seeking U.S. backing for a separate defense technology investment fund targeting battlefield robotics, interceptor drones and AI-enabled missiles, the Financial Times reported last week.

He has maintained ties with other major U.S. technology figures. Last month, Fedorov called Elon Musk “the most important tech person and entrepreneur in the world for our country,” praising Starlink’s move to block Russian forces from using the satellite internet service.

The new company arrives at a moment when Silicon Valley’s relationship with defense is changing. Investors who once avoided military technology are pouring billions into drones, autonomous weapons, AI systems and defense software, betting that future conflicts will rely heavily on cheaper, software-driven systems.

Ukraine brings something different to that investment thesis: battlefield data and years of firsthand experience.

Much remains unknown about Fedorov’s startup, including what it will build and when its first products could appear. Karp’s decision to become its first lead investor, though, gives the venture a powerful connection to one of the technology companies most deeply embedded in Western defense.

For Fedorov, the bet is straightforward. Ukraine has spent years developing technology under wartime pressure. His next task is turning that experience into a company.

Karp has also crossed TechStartups’ radar for reasons far removed from defense. In 2021, we reported on his personal $180,000 donation to help 81-year-old Vermont hermit David Lidstone rebuild his home after it burned down.