American billionaire Alex Karp will not move to Switzerland, but Assura will make a heavy loss in 2022 to Liechtenstein

People were happy in the canton of Schwyz. In November 2021, CH Media announced that Alex Karp wanted to settle in the municipality of Freienbach on the upper part of Lake Zurich. He had bought a house in the Hurden district.

Karp is an American citizen, co-founder and boss of the data company Palantir – and he’s a billionaire. If the 55-year-old IT expert had registered his permanent residence in Freienbach, the municipality, the canton and the federal government would have had to pay several tens of millions of francs in taxes every year. But that is not the case now.

Lex Koller makes it difficult for him

The following entry can be found in the official gazette of the canton of Schwyz: On November 8, 2022, Alexander Caedmon Karp sold the house in Freienbach to Obersee Estate AG. Triesenberg is now given as Karp’s place of residence. The entrepreneur apparently moved to the Principality of Liechtenstein. The municipality of Triesenberg does not want to provide information “for data protection reasons”.

Well-informed circles in the canton of Schwyz report that Karp was considering tearing down the house in Hurden and replacing it with a new building. Lex Koller, among others, spoke out against the plan: The law sets strict rules for foreigners who want to buy real estate in Switzerland. They must have their life center where the home is – nowhere else. However, in the business world, Karp is considered a restless spirit who moves from one place to another.

Living in Freienbach would have made sense because the American company Palantir has established its European headquarters nearby: Altendorf employs about 50 software engineers. Palantir makes data analysis; clients include governments, police services, secret services – as well as private companies.

The group supplies the fashion company C&A. For example, the data should show which products should be produced in what quantities and how inventory levels should be adjusted accordingly. The Swiss media company Ringier is also a customer of Palantir. Ringier boss Marc Walder explains: The database helps experienced journalists make informed decisions about what content best meets the needs of the readership.

However, Palantir recently made headlines with another commitment: the company is helping Ukraine fight the Russian invaders. The software processes data on the movements of enemy troops and weapons such as drones and tanks – providing information on when and where it is worth attacking Ukraine.

Alex Karp has spoken in numerous interviews about the importance of efficient data analysis in warfare. He told the Washington Post, “The power of advanced algorithmic warfare systems is now such that it can be compared to having tactical nuclear weapons against an enemy who has only conventional weapons.” Karp also announced that Palantir will support Ukraine in rebuilding destroyed infrastructure.

Break even after 20 years of loss

The data company went public in 2020 and is now breaking even for the first time since its foundation in 2004. This causes the share price to rise. Karp talks about this success on many television stations and attracts attention only with his untamed hair.

In Schwyz, people take comfort in the fact that the canton’s budget will end year after year with a clear plus, even without Karps moving there. There are about 40 billionaires in Switzerland, some of whom live in the original canton. In addition, Schwyz has succeeded in establishing several larger companies. And the low tax rates attract wealthy people to work in Zurich.

Someone thinks that Karp’s restlessness may lead the well-known business leader to look again soon at a property in the canton of Schwyz. Palantirs’ media office did not respond to a request. (aargauerzeitung.ch)