Alex Karp, co-founder and CEO of Palantir Technologies, sat down for an interview on Dec. 3 that went viral mostly because of his behavior during it. Karp was ridiculed on social media for his constant fidgeting, gesturing with his arms and stumbling to make a point. The company had an odd response to all the attention: It started a fellowship.

On Dec. 7, Palantir, the controversial intelligence and data-analysis company, announced on its X account that “while cross-country skiing this morning, Dr. Karp decided to launch a new program: The Neurodivergent Fellowship.”

The tweet, with 32 million views, included a clip from Karp’s now-infamous interview with Andrew Ross Sorkin at The New York Times DealBook Summit. “If you find yourself relating to him in this video — unable to sit still, or thinking faster than you can speak — we encourage you to apply,” Palantir wrote, adding that “the final round of interviews will be conducted by Dr. Karp personally.”

The Denver-based company promised an application link and, indeed, said link soon appeared. It seems the fellowships are available in Washington, D.C., and New York City, with an annual salary of between $110,000 to $200,000. “Neurodivergent individuals will play a disproportionate role in shaping the future of America and the West,” Palantir said. “They see past performative ideologies and perceive beauty in the world that still exists — which technology and art can expose.”

‘Neurally Divergent’

Karp (pictured) also posted about the initiative. “The neurally divergent (like myself) will disproportionately shape America’s future,” he wrote. The dictionary defines neurodivergent as “differing in mental or neurological function from what is considered typical or normal.” Karp is dyslexic. During the Sorkin interview, he called “the dyslexia thing … the formative moment of my life.”

What to make of all this? Palantir was presented with a crisis: the reaction to Karp’s interview. Its response was to launch the fellowship. Okay, not your typical crisis approach. It’s tough to say whether it’s a smart or rash move. Given the speed of the decision, it obviously wasn’t made with much deliberation. Yet maybe it was an in-your-face response that tried to spin a negative into a positive. We wonder if others will be influenced by its daring.

Time will tell if the move was bold or merely bizarre.

Photo Credit: Palantir via YouTube

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