Cognizant Taps Palantir AI to Modernize Healthcare Operations

Cognizant has partnered with Palantir Technologies to embed artificial intelligence (AI) into its healthcare platforms, marking the latest move by tech services firms to capitalize on the AI boom.

The partnership will integrate Palantir's AI tools into Cognizant's TriZetto system, which processes billions of healthcare claims annually for insurers and providers across the United States, the companies announced Thursday.

"This partnership reflects our commitment to using frontier technologies to deliver value for our clients, while also transforming our own businesses for the next era of AI-led growth," Surya Gummadi, Cognizant's president for the Americas, said in a statement.

The New Jersey-based company, which employs more than 3,51,000 people globally with major operations in India, will use Palantir's Artificial Intelligence Platform to optimize workflows in its healthcare and business process divisions, according to the release.

Cognizant acquired TriZetto in 2014 for approximately $2.7 billion. The platform handles claims processing, payment management and care coordination for healthcare payers.

The companies said they will focus initially on automating labor-intensive tasks in highly regulated environments where accuracy and compliance are important. They plan to expand the collaboration beyond healthcare to other industries.

Palantir, a Denver-based data analytics firm, has been pushing into commercial markets since going public in 2020. The company, founded in 2003, has increasingly targeted healthcare, manufacturing and financial services sectors.

Eric Lakin, Palantir's U.S. commercial lead, said the partnership addresses a key challenge in enterprise AI adoption. "Enterprise AI doesn't fail because models are weak. It fails when AI lacks a shared, governed understanding of how the business actually operates," Lakin said in the statement.

Palantir's platform uses what it calls "ontology-driven AI", which the company describes as a governance layer that helps businesses deploy AI while maintaining control over data and operations.

The collaboration follows a pattern emerging across the technology sector, where traditional IT services companies are partnering with AI specialists to help clients modernize aging systems.

Industry analysts say such partnerships are accelerating as companies face pressure to integrate generative AI into their operations but lack the expertise or infrastructure to do so independently.

For Cognizant, the deal strengthens its position as what it calls an "AI builder", developing ready-to-deploy AI solutions for clients in banking, healthcare, manufacturing and retail. The company has announced several AI partnerships in recent months.

For Palantir, the partnership provides access to Cognizant's extensive client base and global delivery capabilities, potentially accelerating adoption of its AI platform in regulated industries where deployment has been slow due to complexity.

Both companies emphasized that the collaboration prioritizes responsible AI use, security and compliance with healthcare regulations, including the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, which governs patient data privacy.

Gummadi said combining Palantir's technology with Cognizant's industry expertise and engineering scale will help modernize mission-critical systems while creating what he called "enterprise-grade solutions." The companies did not disclose financial terms of the partnership or provide specific timelines for deployment.