The Future of The Tech Industry in A Trump Presidency

trumpThe United States’ election season has come to an end and, remarkably, Donald Trump has emerged victorious. But while many are focusing their vitriol on his vociferous condemnation of immigration and health care reform, there are many other issues that he will have to address.

For example, Trump had also promised, upon his inauguration, to immediately make America’s cybersecurity a major priority of his administration.  He cites personal concerns over attacks specifically from countries like China and North Korea.  As a matter of fact, Trump has also written down his policies on cybersecurity, summing them up in four basic points. Of course, true to Trump’s fashion, these bullet points are still a little vague, only promising to develop “cyber weapons.”

The policy states: “Develop the offensive cyber capabilities we need to deter attacks by both state and non-state actors and, if necessary, to respond appropriately.”

Biocatch cyber strategy biometrics firm head, Uri Rivner, believes that Trump will, in fact,  take such threats seriously, noting that combating them will be very high on the agenda of this future administration.

Rivner goes on to say, “Cyber threats to both critical infrastructure and financial systems are just the sort of clear and present danger that requires decisive action—the likes of which the president elect has been advocating. This in turn may lead to more aggressive cyber security policies, faster response to cyber attack campaigns, and greater investment in cyber security defenses.”

On the other hand, though, Trump critics argue that his policies probably are not going to bode well for both venture capitalists and the tech community as a whole.  Sure, manufacturing jobs—including high-tech manufacturing—might benefit, but the smaller technology firms in Silicon Valley may not have it so easy. USC Marshall School of Business assistant professor Gregory Autry comments, “As tech is oftentimes defined, you’re talking about Silicon Valley. Trump is definitely a problem for that model. His economic policies are focused on punishing China for its trade abuses and returning manufacturing to the U.S.”

Should Trump actually move ahead with his proposal to impose higher tariffs on goods manufactured in China (which will, basically, cancel out two decades of economic policy) it will greatly effect the supply chain for pretty much every American company. In theory, this will definitely encourage American economic independence, but it will likely cut profits or increase prices for the consumer.