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With a little help from Peter Thiel’s controversial company Palintir, America’s Department of Health and Human Services is building a powerful new tool to track the spread of the coronavirus. The Verge reports:
The tool, which is reportedly called HHS Protect Now, is already up and running as of April 10th and it helps officials compile reports on the coronavirus’ spread through the U.S. by collecting data from state and local governments, healthcare institutions, and colleges. It is unclear what exactly this data is, where it comes from, or how it’s being used. It’s also unclear if Palantir is the sole technology provider of the tool, or if other partners are involved…
According to a new report from The Daily Beast, here’s an at least partial description of the kind of data we’re talking about here:
HHS said it has 187 data sets integrated into the platform, with inputs that include hospital capacity and inventories, supply chain data from the government and industry, diagnostic and geographic testing data, demographic statistics, state policy actions, and coronavirus and flu-like emergency department data. The spokesperson also said HHS was relying on “private sector partner contributions of data.”
“We are using the data aggregated… to paint a picture for the Task Force, and state and local leaders to show the impact of their strategic decisions,” the HHS spokesperson told The Daily Beast in a statement… HHS Protect Now was intended to become the “the single source for testing data by April 20th,” according to an internal Trump administration document obtained by The Daily Beast, though it’s unclear if that’s now true. Currently, Dr. Deborah Birx, the White House’s coronavirus response coordinator, is making use of data the tool aggregates, and that data and Birx’s presentations are factors for how Trump and his administration plan to reopen parts of the country, The Daily Beast reports.
The article notes Palantir is controversial "in part because it has [provided profiling tools to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement](https://www.theverge.com/2019/8/26/20833792/palantir-lesbians-who-tech-job-fair-ice-contract) and because it generally operates with extreme secrecy and with little oversight regarding the tools and data it provides to military operations, [governments](https://www.theverge.com/2018/2/27/17054740/palantir-predictive-policing-tool-new-orleans-nopd), and hedge funds."Earliest this year Palantir claimed the #4 spot on Slate’s list of the 30 most evil tech companies, because, they wrote, “almost everyone distrusts Peter Thiel.”