NHS England has removed a statement from its website that said 137 hospital trusts were benefiting from Palantir’s AI-powered health data platform, after The Guardian found that 29 trusts were not using all or most of the technology. The original claim was challenged when trusts confirmed, via freedom of information requests, that the system was either not live or not in use at their sites. The Office for Statistics Regulation is now reviewing the NHS’s claims about the system’s reach and impact.
The Palantir contract, worth £330m, is under scrutiny as ministers consider whether to extend it to 2029. Critics, including MPs, unions and campaign groups, argue that the effectiveness of Palantir’s technology has been overstated and that its presence raises security and sovereignty concerns. NHS England was previously warned by the statistics regulator about unsupported claims regarding extra operations attributed to the platform.
The debate comes amid lobbying by Palantir and calls from campaigners and some MPs to develop an open, UK-based health data platform instead. Several groups have urged the government to end the Palantir contract by 2027, using a transition period to move to alternative solutions. The dispute highlights the importance of accurate reporting and independent oversight in large-scale health data projects.
