5 Interesting Learnings from Palantir at $2.7 Billion in ARR
"Why is Palantir the highest valued public SaaS and Cloud stock?"
So some Cloud and SaaS stocks are on fire, even now. And then … there is Palantir. The fire of the fire.
It’s up +162% in the past year, and is now worth $95 Billion (!) at $2.7 Billion ARR.
That’s a jaw-dropping 35x ARR. Goodness.
Why is Palantir the highest valued public SaaS and Cloud stock?
$2.7 Billion in ARR
Growing 27%, and importantly — re-accelerating.
22% free-cash margins, and now GAAP profitable
Customer count up 41% year-over-year
It’s the bright, AI-driven future folks are excited about.
Let’s dig in.
5 Interesting Learnings:
#1. Growth Has Re-Accelerated
Fueled by commercial and government contracts, and by AI-related demand in both, Palantir is seeing growth re-accelerate from 2023. Pretty impressive.
#2. Artificial Intelligence Platform (AIP) is a Year Old But Fueling $159m in Q2 Bookings Alone
To some Cloud and SaaS leaders, AI is a table-stakes addition. But for Palantir, it’s a true accelerant.
#3. Commercial Customers Fueling Growth. Up From Almost None in 2020 to 295 Today.
Palantir is closing big, big deals and its roots are in government and defense. When it IPO’d, commercial customers were a tiny bit of their business. Fast forward to today, they are closing 300 of them. And revenue is up +55%. This potential for a decade of growth at scale here helps justify the high revenue multiple Palantir trades at.
#4. Closed 27 Deals Over $10,000,000 and 96 $1,000,000 Deals — Just Last Quarter
Palantir is very enterprise.
#5. Profitability Has Increased Even as Growth Has Reaccelerated
Do you have to do it all today, at least once you are at scale? Grow AND be more efficient? Yes, you do. And Palantir has risen to the challenge.
And a few other interesting learnings:
#6. Signed a $480,000,000 (!) 5-Year Deal with U.S. Department of Defense
The budgets here can be epic if you can somehow tap into them. Woah.
#7. Customer Count up 41% to 593 Total Customers
This is the #1 sign for a strong future. Is you new customer count growing > 20%? Palantir is doing far better, at +41%.
#8. NRR of 114%
I would have expected even higher given the huge deal sizes, but no matter, still top tier at scale. And a true engine of growth.
#9. Bootcamps With 1,025+ Organizations Are a Key Marketing Strategy
Customers want to solve their big data problems with AI, but aren’t 100% sure how. Palantir is doing scores of bootcamps, in person, to show them how. Maybe copy this.
Wow, Palantir. They’ve gone truly long from the beginning. And now in its third decade, its truly coming together.
And a look back at how they got to the first $1B ARR here: