Former President Donald Trump has announced plans to impose tariffs on imported computer chips, semiconductors, and pharmaceuticals "in the near future", claiming that companies will build new plants in the US to avoid higher taxes. Trump made the statement at the House GOP Issues Conference held at the Trump National Doral Resort in Miami on Monday afternoon.

Trump's comments come as a direct challenge to President Biden's CHIPS Act, which provides $52 billion in subsidies to encourage the production of semiconductors in the US. Trump dismissed the incentives as "ridiculous", suggesting that instead of providing subsidies, the threat of tariffs would be a more effective incentive for manufacturers to set up shop in the US.

However, critics argue that Trump's proposed tariffs could have unintended consequences, such as increasing prices on laptops, tablets, game consoles, and smartphones. A report by the Consumer Technology Association (CTA) cited by TechCrunch suggests that Trump's tariffs could lead to price hikes of up to 46% on laptops and tablets, 40% on game consoles, and 26% on smartphones.

Despite the potential drawbacks, Trump remains confident that his approach will lead to a surge in domestic production, stating that "we will have more plants built in the next short period of time than ever before because the incentive will be there". However, it's unclear how many of these new plants will be directly attributed to Trump's policies, as some projects, such as The Stargate Project's first datacenter in Texas, were already in the works before his administration.

In a related development, Trump also expressed support for DeepSeek's AI releases, calling them a "positive" development if they can deliver faster and less expensive AI solutions. This comes as other companies, such as OpenAI, Softbank, and others, are preparing to invest $500 billion in AI datacenters.

Trump's comments have sparked concerns about the potential impact on the tech industry, particularly in the wake of his previous trade war with China, which expanded China's trade surplus with the US between 2018 and 2021. As the tech industry continues to grapple with the implications of Trump's policies, one thing is clear: the former President's stance on tariffs and subsidies is likely to have far-reaching consequences for the sector.

For now, the fate of the $52 billion in subsidies from the CHIPS Act under Trump's administration remains uncertain. One thing is certain, however: the tech industry will be watching closely as Trump's policies unfold, and the implications for the industry will be closely scrutinized.