Tariffs, Recessions, and the Impact on AI
The AI: ROI Conference
Economic depressions and trade barriers have historically been catalysts for greater automation (ever heard of the Industrial Revolution?). So with tariffs and new trade regulations on the horizon, did AI’s timeline just get pushed up? Or will it become too expensive to scale?
Brian Merchant
Greg Shove
Is an economic crisis a lid or a log on AI’s fire?
Economic depressions and trade barriers have historically been catalysts for greater automation (ever heard of the Industrial Revolution?). So with tariffs and new trade regulations on the horizon, did AI’s timeline just get pushed up? Or will it become too expensive to scale?
We’re sitting down with author and tech journalist Brian Merchant to get his predictions on how AI will fare a potential recession. Together with Section CEO Greg Shove, they’ll dig into questions like:
- What will tariffs do to the cost of AI infrastructure?
- Will these economic factors speed up or stall the automation timeline for U.S. businesses?
- Could economic pressure push AI adoption in unexpected directions?
- Is all this fear actually just great marketing for AI companies?
- Are we repeating the same old industrial patterns in a new digital wrapper?
Join us for free and bring your questions – and your most anxious friend.
Meet your speakers
Brian Merchant
Brian Merchant is the author of the book Blood in the Machine and the LA Times’ former resident technology columnist. He writes regularly about AI disillusionment at his newsletter, Blood in the Machine.
Greg Shove
Greg Shove is the CEO of Section and a six-time startup CEO. He is the founder of Machine + Partners, an AI consultancy helping companies deploy AI products. His mission is to get 100,000 students into "the AI class" by 2025.
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