Liberation Day, as President Trump termed it, has not been welcomed as a liberation by most other people. The markets saw drops that were comparable to the disruption caused by the global Covid lockdowns. Others have puzzled over the decision to impose tariffs on places like the British Indian Ocean Territories (population: a US military base) and the Heard and McDonald Islands (population: penguins).
Some have suggested that the tariffs are the product of AI — perhaps Elon Musk’s Grok. Others suggest that it’s just the latest move in a game of four-dimensional chess from one of the few people in the world who has bankrupted multiple casinos they owned. But with Trump sticking to his guns, his motive may be less important than the new reality.
Here are some of the reactions from the tech sector.
Can leveraging tech minimise tariff effects?
Any crisis can, of course, create opportunities for new tech to prove its worth. David Villalón, CEO and cofounder of Spanish AI startup Maisa, says this is no exception.
“The one piece of good news is unlike the 1930s when this was last tried, new technologies such as AI can provide pivotal support, enabling fast, efficient management of rapid change,” Villalón said. “This brings an opportunity for tech founders who can help businesses turn the chaos into a commercial use — from just keeping track of all that is changing day to day, to managing the impact on global supply chains.”
Payment platform PXP’s CEO, Kamran Hedjri said that, with tariffs adding to costs, maximising efficiency elsewhere would be critical. “Retailers operating in cross-border environments face fresh challenges to profitability and pricing strategy,” Hedjri said. “In this volatile environment, payments can serve as a strategic lever. For retailers processing large volumes of transactions, small inefficiencies can rapidly become costly. Faster settlements become especially crucial as access to working capital is squeezed.”
The end for cheap, online, global retail?
Online retailers will be hit particularly hard, with the tariff exemption for items valued at less than $800 removed, although receiving a reprieve that will only last until collection systems are in place.
“For retail and eCommerce merchants especially, rising duties are squeezing margins and prompting a rethink of cross-border strategies,” said Zaki Farooq, Chief Technology Officer and Co-Founder of PayFuture. Referring to the low-value goods exemption, Farooq explained, “with Shein and Temu alone accounting for nearly 600,000 daily US-bound parcels under this scheme, the impact on digital-first retail is massive.”
Tribe Payments’ head of product management, Robin Anderson, called the decision ‘a seismic shift in cross-border commerce’ and said the consequences for retailers would be significant, “merchants shipping into the US must now factor in longer customs processing times, higher fulfilment costs, and the likely increase in customer service issues related to unexpected duties,” he said.
Echoing Hediri’s remarks about the importance of payments, he added, “in this climate, intelligent payments infrastructure becomes a key competitive edge. This isn’t just about surviving economic headwinds – it’s about using payments as a strategic asset.”
Can crypto benefit from a loss of economic confidence?
But while traditional markets may be suffering, some see benefits for other sectors. The crypto sector perhaps a major beneficiary by offering a decentralised hedge against fiat currencies buffeted by unpredictable policy changes.
“Trump’s proposed tariffs potentially supercharge Bitcoin’s appeal by shaking confidence in fiat currencies like the U.S. dollar,” said Ryan Lee, chief analyst at Bitget Research. “With uncertainty lingering past Trump’s 2 April ‘Liberation Day’, we’d expect a spike in Bitcoin.”
An opening gambit, but what is the counter?
Although the immediate impact of tariffs will increase the prices of almost everything the American consumer buys, it appears the move is intended to bolster American power. Although only around 4% of the world population, the USA’s 346 million residents are the world’s biggest consumers. And that means those countries that rely on selling to America will soon suffer.
“It’s all for the US to benefit here,” said Mark Pearson, founder of Fuel Ventures. “I really think Trump’s doing this as a big negotiation tactic. Without these tariffs, there would be no conversation, business as usual around the world. He’s really leveraging the US muscle; they’ve got the power.”
While some economies will be protected by their sheer size — the European Common Market, for example, at 450 million residents, is larger than the USA. However, many smaller countries may feel they have no option but to try to find a better deal from the USA.
Pearson, however, is robust in his view that compromise would be a mistake. “We do need to retaliate. You can’t go on forever,” he explained. “If you back down, you’re in a very weak corner position, with the US making the rules and everyone else just abiding by it. We can’t have that.”
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