I have explained in detail why I believe the very popular idea that war is supposedly an engine of progress is mistaken. But when Russia suffers a military defeat and withdraws from Ukraine, many technologies developed or refined during the war will prove useful in peacetime.
Fibre-optic drones could help during mining accidents, underwater operations and searches for people trapped beneath rubble — anywhere radio signals cannot reach. The ability to operate without GPS could be useful in countless situations, with autonomous systems providing a backup to conventional navigation. Uncrewed maritime systems could be used for hydrographic surveying, inspecting underwater cables and pipelines, and dozens of other purposes. Heavy drones such as the Baba Yaga could even deliver IKEA furniture.
The First World War brought major advances in medicine. Technologies developed during this war could likewise be adapted for evacuating people injured in accidents and for prosthetics, including bionic prostheses. Robots and drones will also be needed to clear mines from vast areas.
Crime, of course, will also adopt new technologies — from contract killings to delivering drugs by drone. And this is where the capabilities developed through systems such as Palantir could prove extremely useful in fighting crime, particularly the ability to work with large datasets. Bank transfers, tax returns, company registers, customs declarations, telephone records, property records, surveillance cameras and dozens of other sources of information can be brought together to create a single graph linking people, companies, accounts, transactions, phones and vehicles. This makes it possible to identify anomalies and fight both conventional and cybercrime more effectively. It could help uncover everything from scam call centres defrauding millions of people to terrorist financing.
Palantir could also become a powerful weapon against corruption. Such a system can identify connections between an official and their relatives, school friends, lovers, drivers and other proxies. Who suddenly bought property in Europe or went on holiday to the Maldives? Who acquired a car they could never afford on their official salary? Why does the same company keep winning public tenders when its real owner turns out to be the official’s uncle?
The system can detect the splitting of large sums into smaller transactions, money routed through chains of intermediaries, anomalies in public procurement and concealed beneficial ownership.
Palantir’s capabilities are extraordinary. But technology alone will not be enough. What will also be required is political will and courage — including the willingness to prosecute old friends and even war heroes when the evidence demands it.
