Palantir faces legal case from Department of Labor over discrimination

Silicon Valley data firm Palantir is being taken to court by the US Department of Labor over claims that it has discriminated against Asian job applicants since 2010.

Known as one of the world's most valuable privately-owned companies, Palantir is perhaps most famous for providing the data that helped the operation which resulted in the killing of former al-Qaeda boss Osama bin Laden.

More than $340m of federal contracts have been awarded to the company in the last six years, and Patricia Shiu, director of the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Program (OFCCP), said that it has an obligation to avoid discrimination.

"Federal contractors have an obligation to ensure that their hiring practices and policies are free of all forms of discrimination," said Shiu in a statement.

"Our nation's taxpayers deserve to know that companies employed with public funds are providing equal opportunity for job seekers."

Palantir denied that it had broken any legislation and defended its employment practices.

"We are disappointed that the Department of Labor chose to proceed with an administrative action and firmly deny the allegations," the statement from the company read.