Palantir and Shield AI are both described as defence software, but they operate in different parts of the stack. Palantir builds data and AI platforms and reported Q2 2026 revenue of $1.935 billion, up 93% year over year. Shield AI builds an AI pilot, Hivemind, and says the software has piloted 26 classes of vehicle. Palantir files public accounts. Shield AI is privately held, so the sources reviewed give a funding event for it and not revenue. This page compares the disclosed evidence and is explicit where one side has none.
Side By Side
| Palantir Technologies | Shield AI | |
|---|---|---|
| Corporate form | Public company filing with the SEC; incorporated in Delaware on 6 May 2003 | Private; founded 2015; venture-backed |
| Principal offices | 19505 Biscayne Blvd, Aventura, Florida | Not stated in the sources reviewed |
| Latest revenue disclosed | Q2 2026 revenue $1.935 billion, up 93% year over year | Not disclosed in the sources reviewed |
| US government revenue | Q2 2026 $809 million, up 90% year over year | Not disclosed in the sources reviewed |
| Profit | Q2 2026 GAAP net income $1.062 billion (55% margin) | Not disclosed in the sources reviewed |
| Outlook | Full-year 2026 revenue guidance raised to $8.150 billion to $8.158 billion | Not disclosed in the sources reviewed |
| Funding | Not applicable in the sources reviewed | $1.5 billion Series G at a $12.7 billion post-money valuation plus $500 million preferred equity (March 2026) |
| Core products | Four platforms: Gotham, Foundry, Apollo and AIP | Hivemind AI pilot; Tracker C-UAS software; V-BAT and X-BAT aircraft named in its financing release |
| Defence programme evidence | Selected by the US Army in March 2024 to develop and deliver the Tactical Intelligence Targeting Access Node ground station, the Army's first AI-defined vehicle | Selected for the next phase of the CCA Increment 1 mission-autonomy programme; primary provider due in 2027 |
STAY ON TOP OF THIS MARKET
Track Palantir Technologies and Shield AI with the weekly Signal Dossier.
One free weekly briefing on the signals that matter in the autonomous-systems sector: contract awards, capital flows, regulatory shifts, and what they change. Evaluating a specific company? A five-day, source-traced Decision Brief answers one decision question for £999.
TWO KINDS OF DEFENCE SOFTWARE
Palantir's filing describes four principal platforms: Gotham, Foundry, Apollo and its Artificial Intelligence Platform. It says Gotham integrates with its other platforms and broader defence offerings to power missions across allied defence and intelligence operations. Its defence work includes the Army's Tactical Intelligence Targeting Access Node ground station, which Palantir says it was selected in March 2024 to develop and deliver.
Shield AI's centre of gravity is flight autonomy. Its Hivemind software, the company says, has piloted 26 classes of vehicle including F-16s, jet-powered UAVs, helicopters, drone boats and ground vehicles, and was selected by the Air Force as a mission autonomy provider for the Collaborative Combat Aircraft programme. DefenseScoop's report names Shield AI, Anduril and Collins Aerospace as the three vendors moving to the next phase, with a primary provider to be selected in 2027.
SCALE: ONE SET OF ACCOUNTS, ONE FUNDING ROUND
Palantir's disclosed scale is large. In the quarter to 30 June 2026 it reported revenue of $1.935 billion, US government revenue of $809 million and GAAP net income of $1.062 billion. It raised its full-year 2026 revenue guidance to between $8.150 billion and $8.158 billion.
Shield AI's disclosed scale is a financing. In March 2026 it announced a $1.5 billion Series G at a $12.7 billion post-money valuation, led by Advent International, and $500 million of fixed-return preferred equity. It has not published revenue in the sources reviewed, so no revenue comparison is possible, and Drone Intelligence does not estimate one.
OUR ASSESSMENT
Our assessment: this is a category comparison more than a head-to-head. No contract in the sources reviewed shows the two competing directly. Palantir is the only one of the two to have disclosed revenue in the sources reviewed, and its figures are large. Shield AI's disclosed position is narrower: Hivemind on aircraft programmes such as CCA, where the mission-autonomy selection is due in 2027.
When To Choose
Choose Palantir Technologies if:
- Buyer wants a data and decision platform with both US government and US commercial revenue (Q2 2026: $809 million and $764 million)
- Investor wants disclosed revenue, profit and guidance from a public company
- Programme needs ground-station and targeting software such as the Army Tactical Intelligence Targeting Access Node system
Choose Shield AI if:
- Buyer needs an AI pilot for aircraft, boats or ground vehicles rather than a data platform
- Programme is a Collaborative Combat Aircraft effort where mission autonomy is being competed
- Counter-UAS programme that wants passive, software-based detection, as licensed by L3Harris
Full Profiles
Palantir Technologies
Aventura, Florida, USA · NASDAQ: PLTR
Software company whose platforms, Gotham, Foundry, Apollo and its Artificial Intelligence Platform (AIP), integrate data for government and commercial customers. Builds no aircraft.
View profile →Shield AI
San Diego, California, USA · Private
Defence autonomy software company. Hivemind enables GPS-denied autonomous flight using on-board AI rather than external positioning signals.
View profile →Sources & References
- Palantir, Q2 2026 results press release (SEC Form 8-K exhibit 99.1, 3 August 2026)
- Palantir, Form 10-Q for the quarter ended 30 June 2026 (SEC)
- Shield AI, Series G and Aechelon acquisition (26 March 2026)
- DefenseScoop, Air Force picks Anduril, General Atomics to build first operational CCA drones (17 June 2026)
- The Defense Post, Ondas expands autonomous systems portfolio with DZYNE Technologies acquisition (7 July 2026)
- Shield AI, Tracker C-UAS integration with L3Harris VAMPIRE (1 September 2026)
Weighing Palantir Technologies against Shield AI for a live decision? Commission a Decision Brief: an independent three-page read on either company, delivered in five working days.
Related Comparisons
Shield AI vs AeroVironment
An autonomy software company with one aircraft against a publicly listed multi-domain hardware prime. The comparison buyers keep asking machines to make.
Anduril vs Palantir
Two Silicon Valley defence insurgents that meet at the software layer: a vertically integrated hardware and autonomy company against a pure software and data-analytics platform.
Skydio vs Shield AI
Two US autonomy leaders at different layers, an autonomous drone manufacturer versus an autonomy-software company.
Anduril vs Shield AI
Two of the most heavily capitalised non-traditional US defence-tech companies. Different layers of the autonomous warfare stack.
Auterion vs Shield AI
Open-source autonomy at commercial scale vs proprietary mission autonomy in GPS-denied environments. Two architectural philosophies, two procurement profiles.
General Atomics vs Shield AI
The airframe maker and the AI pilot: two companies that sit on the same Collaborative Combat Aircraft programme from opposite ends of the stack.
Drone Intelligence, Comparison. Compiled from public filings, company disclosures and specialist reporting. Last updated 29 October 2026.
info@droneintelligence.ai