The story so far: On September 15, a small group of protesters assembled near San Francisco’s Moscone Center, the venue for Salesforce’s annual tech event, calling for an end to any and all contracts between the company and the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), as thousands of attendees passed by them to watch CEO Marc Benioff’s keynote. Though Big Tech firms have long sought out U.S. government contracts, specific links to ICE are now sparking employee discomfort, customer protests, and calls for boycotts.
But a report by the New York Times in February revealed that the agency was detaining hundreds of children. The agency has received billions of dollars in funding during U.S. President Donald Trump’s second term, and dramatically ramped up its presence. Arrests have spiked, along with the use of violence against citizens. Trump’s second term.
Another report by Marshall Project , a not-for-profit news organisation, said over 6,200 children were detained by ICE during Mr.
ICE says it “does not detain unaccompanied children — except in rare instances.
Large tech companies often seek high-profile government contracts with federal agencies as they provide regular revenue streams and boost their reputation. “Palantir is enabling ICE to utilise our platform to better track the immigration lifecycle and serve our national security while promoting efficiency, transparency, and accountability. Robin Washington, Salesforce’s President and Chief Operating and Financial Officer, stressed that the company valued equality and trust, in response to The Hindu’s questions on anti-ICE protesters.
Palantir’s contract with the U.S. government began under the Obama administration in 2011, and has continued through four administrations. Salesforce, on the other hand, per CEO Marc Benioff’s Dreamforce keynote, said that all 50 U.S. states and 15 cabinet agencies use the company’s service.
By improving data integration and data-dependent workflows, our software can help ICE more effectively and reliably perform its core functions,” Palantir said in a blog post.
