Thrive Capital has appointed Jim Siders, a longtime Palantir executive, as chief executive officer of Shield Technology Partners, a newly formed business focused on IT services. Shield was launched in June by Thrive Holdings and ZBS Partners with more than $100 million in initial funding.
Siders spent over 12 years at Palantir, most recently serving as chief information officer, where he oversaw global IT operations, infrastructure, and business applications. He joined the company as an IT helpdesk engineer. Palantir has been among the strongest-performing stocks during the AI boom, rising nearly thirtyfold since late 2022.
Shield acquires ownership stakes in IT services companies and aims to accelerate their growth by providing access to advanced AI tools and engineering capabilities. As of December, Shield works with seven companies and expects to generate more than $100 million in revenue this year, primarily serving small and mid-sized businesses.
The appointment follows Thrive’s launch of Thrive Holdings earlier this year, a division designed to own and operate companies positioned to benefit from technological shifts. OpenAI recently took an ownership stake in Thrive Holdings and plans to embed engineering and research teams within its portfolio companies. Siders said his initial focus will be on strengthening existing partnerships and identifying new acquisition opportunities as Shield expands.
