Notes from Palantir Night Live: A Fashion Show for Tech Geeks

On a recent cold and windy December night, in an office park in northern Virginia, a group of technology industry professionals were holding a fashion show. Volunteers walked the runway in "geek chic" outfits that alternately displayed sophisticated gadgetry and referenced iconic pop culture franchises. These included a t-shirt with a built-in keyboard synthesizer, a chainmail coif hoodie, lightsabers, laser guns that shoot marshmallows, and something called a “utility kilt” that that somehow manages to be even more macho than it sounds.

The holiday-themed event, catchily titled Geek the Halls, was held at Palantir Technologies’ plush Tysons Corner, Virginia offices in place of their usual once-a-month Palantir Night Live discussion series. The tricked-out apparel was courtesy of Palantir’s Fairfax, Virginia neighbors ThinkGeek.

Forbes recently listed Palantir, a billion-dollar data analysis software company with a strong reputation built largely on excellent word-of-mouth, as one of the "names you need to know in 2011". A recent profile of the company on TechCrunch.com explains their product well:

“Palantir’s user-friendly analysis program is becoming a major player in the war against terrorism and cyber espionage, stimulus spending accountability (Palantir is literally powering the administration’s efforts to identify fraud in stimulus projects), health care, and even natural disasters like the recent earthquake in Haiti.”

Palantir’s namesake alludes to futuring while referencing an uber-popular fandom obsession: A palantir is a fictional seeing stone, kind of like a crystal ball, that gives glimpses of possible futures, in J.R.R. Tolkein’s epic The Lord of the Rings.

Founded in 1995, ThinkGeek carries a wide variety of apparel, gadgets, and toys, including those aforementioned interactive t-shirts. If you’ve ever wanted to play drums in a classic rock cover band while simultaneously enjoying a nice slice of chocolate cake in your office breakroom, this is your moment:

Attendees were also encouraged to donate to Toys for Tots.

Below are some photos from the event by yours truly...