Alex Karp: the maverick leading a “scary business”

Palantir, headed by Alex Karp, could be following Snap in holding a high-profile listing. But the business itself has made some people nervous.

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Did Alex Karp's company help kill Osama bin Laden?
(Image credit: © 2016 Bloomberg Finance LP)

When Snap, the owner of social media app Snapchat, floated on the stock exchange earlier this month, there was much speculation about which tech giant would be next. Leading the list of candidates is Palantir, the data-analysis firm co-founded by Peter Thiel, which has long been regarded as one of Silicon Valley's most promising start-ups.

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