Palantir CTO Calls Iran War 'First Major Conflict Driven by AI'; Bloomberg Reports AI Boom Split Risk

Palantir CTO Shyam Sankar told Bloomberg on March 24 that the Iran war represents 'the first major conflict driven by artificial intelligence,' with Maven processing over 8,000 targeting actions since Operation Epic Fury began. The system enabled identification and engagement of approximately 1,000 targets within the first 24 hours. Separately, Bloomberg's March 25 analysis warned the Iran war could 'split the AI boom in two,' with Middle Eastern investment in AI infrastructure now at risk as Gulf states that pledged billions for data centers face direct military conflict. The convergence of AI-powered targeting with the Anthropic supply chain risk designation, the Minab school strike attributed to stale DIA intelligence rather than AI error, and the Pentagon's simultaneous mandating and blacklisting of its own AI vendor creates what Foreign Policy called conditions 'lurching toward an AI doomsday' in the military applications domain.