Kyiv, Ukraine - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Tuesday he had met in Kyiv with the CEO of AI firm Palantir, which plays an increasingly prominent role in the US military.

Russia, which invaded its neighbor in 2022, and Ukraine have both been racing to expand artificial intelligence tools on the battlefield, as part of a wider AI arms race, in which US company Palantir has positioned itself as a dominant player.

"There certainly are areas where we can be useful to one another, strengthening the defense of Ukraine, America, and our partners," Zelensky said in a statement on social media.

"We discussed areas of technological development – both in the context of combat operations and civilian needs," he added.

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Ukraine Defence Minister Mykhailo Fedorov said separately that he had met with Palantir CEO Alex Karp and that the two parties aimed to deepen their cooperation.

"During the meeting, we showed the Palantir team how Ukraine protects its skies, holds back the enemy at the front, and strikes at the Russian economy," Fedorov said in a statement.

Fedorov added that Karp first visited Ukraine in June 2022.

"Our goal is to deepen our partnership with Palantir on AI solutions and defense tech projects that provide Ukraine with a technological edge," Fedorov said.

Russia's invasion of Ukraine has spurred a race to innovate weapons, in particular drones, that have proliferated on both sides of the front line.