Palantir Technologies’ (PLTR) transformation is nothing short of insane.

From its humble beginnings as a low-key military vendor, the company has effectively become the Pentagon’s AI command center.

For perspective, in 2019, the company reported $742.6 million in sales, along with a net loss of $579.6 million. Today, its trailing-12-month revenue has blown past $3.4 billion, with a mind-boggling $763.3 million in net income.

That incredible turnaround is driven by data fusion and government-scale adoption, with its robust software threading through the arteries of U.S. targeting, logistics, and intelligence systems.

That powerful surge has been mirrored in its stock. 

Palantir’s market value skyrocketed past $400 billion in October 2025, up from under $60 billion just 18 months prior, marking one of tech’s most dramatic re-ratings since the AI boom began.

Palantir dominates two key zones, including government and defense AI operations, as well as enterprise data-AI platforms.

In the first area, it battles the likes of Anduril, Shield AI, Rebellion Defense, and big integrators such as Booz Allen and Leidos, all of which chase the same mission-software gold rush.

On the enterprise front, Palantir faces stiff competition from Databricks, Snowflake, Microsoft Azure, AWS, and Google Cloud, which are racing to own the next generation of data stacks and AI apps.

Yet despite Palantir’s iron grip, an emerging stealth defense-tech startup is making quiet inroads, storming into Palantir’s turf.

Backed by deep-pocketed investors, it’s already carving out some big wins in the same mission-software zones Palantir helped define. 

Backed by Bain Capital and $100 million in recurring revenue, Govini is fast becoming the quietest threat Palantir has ever faced.

Image source: Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images

Govini quietly muscles into Palantir’s turf

Palantir Technologies typically hogs all the spotlight in defense analytics, but a quieter rival just crossed a massive milestone that’s turning heads across Washington.

Arlington-based Govini is an emerging defense tech software startup that has been in the game for roughly 14 years and has surpassed $100 million in annual recurring revenue.

As it expands its team and product lineup on the back of growing global security demands, Govini has also landed a massive $150 million growth investment from Bain Capital.

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“We’re growing faster than 100% in a three-year CAGR, and I expect that next year we’ll continue to do the same,” CEO Tara Murphy Dougherty told CNBC. “With how big this market is, we can keep growing for a long, long time, and that’s really exciting.”

Govini’s flagship platform, Ark, leverages AI to modernize the military’s defense supply chain, with the ability to track everything from procurement bottlenecks to rare earth dependencies.

Govini already boasts a whopping $900 million U.S. government contract, along with multiple deals with the Department of War, giving it deeper roots inside the Pentagon.

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Dougherty, who’s previously been with Palantir, said she hopes Govini could potentially carve out a “vertical slice” in the defense tech space. “If the United States can get this acquisition system right, it can actually be a decisive advantage for us,” she added.

Additionally, with China ramping up shipbuilding along with mineral control, Dougherty warned, “The rare earth crisis that we’re in is a serious one”, which is something Govini intends to help fix.

Quick takeaways:

  • Govini has blown past $100 million in annual recurring revenue, having secured a $150million investment from Bain Capital in scaling its potent defense AI platform.
  • The 14-year-old Arlington-based startup holds a $900 million U.S. government contract along with multiple Pentagon deals, including with the Department of War.
  • CEO Tara Murphy Dougherty, a former Palantir executive, says Govini is growing quicker than a 100% CAGR.
  • Govini’s Ark AI platform tracks defense-supply bottlenecks along with rare-earth dependencies.

Palantir in 2025: earnings, contracts, and the climb higher

Palantir Technologies has been on a tear this year, leveraging its government roots to achieve dominance in AI. 

In its latest quarterly showing in Q2, the AI giant hit a new high-water mark with $1 billion in sales, up 48% year-over-year, and $0.16 in adjusted EPS, topping Wall Street estimates. Additionally, its management hiked both Q3 and full-year guidance to nearly $4.14 to $4.15 billion, led by surging U.S. demand for its Artificial Intelligence Platform (AIP) across defense and industry.

The contracts backed the print. 

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The U.S. Army folded roughly 75 separate deals into a 10-year enterprise agreement worth almost $10 billion, which effectively streamlines access to Palantir’s software at scale.

Similarly, the U.S. Space Force followed up with a $218 million delivery order for its Space C2 Data Platform, while the Pentagon increased the ceiling for its Maven Smart System by an eye-catching $795 million, showcasing rapid deployment of AI-enabled targeting and intelligence networks.

Palantir’s investors have rewarded it accordingly. Its stock is up triple digits year to date, with the company’s market value topping $400 billion, cementing its status as one of the breakout AI players this year.

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