Time for Tariffs

Apr 11, 2025

Explore the evolving concept of reindustrialization and its implications for the U.S. economy. The discussion examines the impact of recent tariffs on startups and supply chains, urging entrepreneurs to adapt to these changes. Delve into how global trade dynamics influence American industrial policy and discover investment strategies amid these tariff shifts. The challenges facing businesses are highlighted, alongside insights on operational innovation and navigating economic uncertainties in today's landscape.

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ANECDOTE

Shopify Mandates AI

Shopify mandates AI usage for all employees, integrating it into performance reviews.
This mandate follows discussions on tariffs and AI's potential to revolutionize industries.

INSIGHT

Tariffs and Uncertainty

Tariffs create uncertainty, impacting markets and decision-making.
Navigating this requires a high internal locus of control and continuous learning.

INSIGHT

US Manufacturing Capacity

The US lacks sufficient manufacturing capacity for its economy and potential global conflicts.
Tariffs aim to address this, but their effectiveness is debatable.

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What reindustrialization actually means, and how we do it

The market is digesting the impact of the latest round of tariffs, and given that reshoring is a core talking point, we wanted to use this as an opportunity to cover our perspective on the broader reindustrialization efforts.

This is very much an evolving dynamic, so we focus on the broader picture to give this more of a durable perspective. What do stronger tariffs signal about the next phase of American industrial policy? How do you navigate a world of uncertainty?

We dig into the logic behind tariffs, the practical impacts on startups and supply chains, and how founders should think about building in a world where industrial policy is no longer background noise.

The challenge with commenting on anything like this is that you stray outside of your circle of competence. We try to ground this by focusing more on what we know, and leaving other talking points for other people to tackle.

Lastly, please send us any questions you’d like us to cover in our upcoming Q&A episode! LinkedIn or Twitter DM us.

🔗 Show Resource Links

Here’s the iPhone. Here’s the iPhone with Tariffs — WSJ.

🎙️ Podcast Links

🌀 About Motion Blur

Exploring what makes great companies and technologies work. Brought to you by Grant Gregory & Hammad Aslam. Grant is an investor at ⁠⁠Cantos⁠⁠ where he focuses on physical world technologies. Hammad is a Partner at Kivu Ventures, ⁠⁠Susa⁠⁠’s growth fund. Learn more about the hosts:

Grant Gregory, ⁠⁠⁠@grant__gregory⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠⁠Embers⁠⁠⁠
Hammad Aslam, ⁠⁠⁠@_hammad_aslamh⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠⁠Susa Ventures⁠⁠

If you're interested in the real inside baseball of tech, entrepreneurship, and start-up investing, tune in every week for new episodes.

Intro music credit: ⁠⁠⁠Will Harrison⁠⁠⁠

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