Tech Leaders Prepare for Trump Impact --- President-elect's focus on tariffs and reducing regulation could affect AI plans

"With President-elect Donald Trump preparing to take office, business technology leaders say they are bracing for immediate and long-term impacts from policies he will likely institute. That is in areas including tariffs, regulating artificial intelligence and mergers and acquisitions.

For chief information officers, AI continues to be top of mind. While the urgency to deploy the technology inside their organizations continues unabated, CIOs are keeping a keen eye on how the federal government might play a role in reining in the technology, or encouraging it to thrive.

"The way AI affects a CIO's job is primarily around strategic planning," said Suvajit Basu, the former CIO of Goya Foods. That includes things like whether AI will be "intelligent enough" to improve the efficiency of logistics planning, and how it will shape the workforce, he said.

One of the first areas Trump can make an impact is in tariffs, where the president-elect can act without seeking congressional approval. He has proposed tariffs of at least 60% on China, and 10% to 20% on other countries.

Many American companies rely on foreign-made hardware -- including laptops and smartphones -- for their employees. If prices for those goods go up, some CIOs say their technology budgets could be affected.

Thomas Phelps, senior vice president of corporate strategy and CIO of Long Beach, Calif.-based Laserfiche, said he is concerned because the software company relies on some imported hardware, and its technology budget is already fairly set for next year.

Others say they are ready for anything. John Roese, global chief technology officer and chief AI officer of Dell, said companies are generally adaptable to changing tariff rates.

It is likely that President-elect Trump will take a more relaxed approach to federal oversight of AI, especially as Big Tech companies and startups alike have pushed for a light touch on AI safety rules. The benefit of looser rules, they say, is keeping innovation flowing.

Trump has already said he would dismantle the Biden administration's executive order on AI, which sought to manage a range of the technology's threats from privacy to national security.

Removing the order has the benefit of cutting bureaucracy and speeding up the release of AI products, according to Daniel Castro, vice president of the Big Tech-funded think tank Information Technology and Innovation Foundation. Companies interested in using AI in riskier areas like hiring or extending credit might also feel more comfortable making the leap, he said.

The move also puts more work on companies' shoulders to investigate AI model safety and potential bias. Vish Narendra, CIO of Graphic Packaging International, said AI regulation helps enterprises understand why different models spit out various results.

The administration of President-elect Trump will likely bring about a deregulated mergers-and-acquisitions landscape, according to Chris Farmer, founder and chief executive of venture-capital firm SignalFire. "You need a robust M&A market for the venture market, and frankly, the innovation economy in general to thrive," Farmer said.

Plus, the new Republican administration will likely encourage "risky bets" on AI development, according to Shawn Helms, co-head of the technology transactions and outsourcing practice at law firm McDermott Will & Emery.

Still, a more freewheeling M&A environment isn't all good news for CIOs.

While vendor acquisitions might improve the suite of products tech leaders have to choose from, it also creates more work because they will need to ensure their IT systems are integrated and consistent, said Basheer Janjua, chief digital officer at software firm CloudBees." [1]

1. Tech Leaders Prepare for Trump Impact --- President-elect's focus on tariffs and reducing regulation could affect AI plans. Lin, Belle; Bousquette, Isabelle.  Wall Street Journal, Eastern edition; New York, N.Y.. 12 Nov 2024: B.4.