Without delving into specifics about the potential impact of the $52 billion in subsidies from the CHIPS Act during his administration, Donald Trump has indicated that tariffs on foreign computer chips, semiconductors, and pharmaceuticals are imminent. He also mentioned DeepSeek’s AI developments, stating, “…coming up with a faster method of AI and less expensive, that’s good. I view that as a positive if it is fact and it is true, and nobody knows, but I view that as a positive.”
In his speech at the House GOP Issues Conference at the Trump National Doral Resort in Miami, he argued against providing billions in subsidies like those proposed under Biden’s administration, asserting instead that the incentive for manufacturers will be “they will not want to pay a tax.”
This stance contrasts with the outcomes of the trade war with China during his first term, which increased China’s trade surplus with the US between 2018, when tariffs were initiated, and 2021. A report by CTA cited by TechCrunch last year suggested that Trump’s proposed tariffs could raise prices on laptops and tablets by 46 percent, game consoles by 40 percent, and smartphones by 26 percent.
Trump also claimed, “we will have more plants built in the next short period of time than ever before because the incentive will be there.” However, it remains uncertain how many of these will resemble The Stargate Project’s initial plant, which had been planned long before his administration. He remarked of DeepSeek that “instead of spending billions you will spend less and hopefully come up with the same solution,” despite OpenAI, Softbank & others reportedly planning to invest $500 billion in AI datacenters.
