Palantir, NHS Data, and the Fight Over UK Patient Records

The NHS is working with companies like Palantir on its Federated Data Platform.But the concern is bigger than software.In this episode of Rethinking Tech, Aparna and Harinda unpack why Palantir’s role in NHS data infrastructure has raised serious questions about UK patient privacy, health data sovereignty, US tech power, and whether sensitive medical records could become part of a much larger AI and analytics play.At the center of this conversation is a deeper question: who should control the infrastructure behind a national health system — and what happens when that infrastructure is built by a foreign technology company?What this episode exploresWhy Palantir is involved in the NHS Federated Data PlatformWhat access to identifiable UK patient data could meanWhy UK citizens and legislators have raised concernsWhether NHS health data could flow toward US interestsWhy health data is so valuable for AI, analytics, and future productsHow governments become dependent on foreign tech platformsWhy this debate is about sovereignty, not just efficiencyWhy this mattersHealth data is some of the most sensitive data a person has.It can reveal diagnoses, treatments, family history, risk factors, disabilities, mental health, reproductive health, and more.So when national healthcare systems modernize their data infrastructure, the public deserves to know what is being exchanged.Who can access the data?Where can it go?Can it improve private AI systems?Can foreign governments benefit from it?And can citizens meaningfully opt out?The NHS may need better data systems.But the real issue is whether modernization should require handing critical health infrastructure to powerful foreign tech companies.About Rethinking TechRethinking Tech explores the intersection of technology, geopolitics, business, and ethics — focusing on how systems actually work, not just how they’re talked about.