Sadiq Khan blocks £50m Met police deal with Palantir
London Mayor Sadiq Khan has blocked a £50m deal with controversial US tech firm Palantir.
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The mayor has cited a “clear and serious breach” of procurement rules.
Scotland Yard wanted to use Palantir’s AI tech to automate intelligence on criminal investigations.
Critics say Palantir’s widening reach across the UK’s public services is a cause for concern.
The Mayor’s Office for Policing and Crime (MOPAC) said Scotland Yard only engaged with one potential supplier, Palantir.
MOPAC also cited concerns around the company's values and ethics.
City Hall also said that the proposal had not “ensured or demonstrated value for money.”
Software company Palantir, founded by tech magnate Peter Thiel – a prominent donor to US President Donald Trump – holds contracts with other UK public sector bodies, including the NHS and the Ministry of Defence.
Recently the Met Police trialled Palantir’s AI to monitor staff behaviour to try and root out corrupt and failing officers.
Scotland Yard said the trial was a success, and that it resulted in police officers being investigated for misdemeanours, including making money by abusing the computerised roster system, falsely claiming they were in the office, and failing to declare they were Freemasons.
Yesterday at the London Assembly, Deputy Commissioner Matt Jukes said the AI technology had identified “unacceptable, dishonest, corrosive behaviours” from Metropolitan Police officers.
However the Metropolitan Police Federation, which represents more than 30,000 officers in London, has warned over the use of AI in policing.
General secretary Matt Cane said: “This use of AI will seriously damage the trust Metropolitan Police officers have in the force and ride a coach and horses through already plummeting morale.
“No-one wants bad police officers in policing.
“The good, brave and hard-working officers we represent are the first to say that the small minority of officers who are not fit to serve should not be in the police service.
“But this use of AI to spy on our officers is not proportionate, just or proper.
“It’s an outrageous and unforgivable invasion of privacy.”
In September, Palantir announced a £1.5 billion investment to establish the UK as its European headquarters for defence, creating 350 “high-skilled” jobs.
Earlier this year, the firm was awarded a contract by the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority to analyse internal intelligence data.