AI Navigates Trump Tariff Impact

Businesses are utilizing artificial intelligence to navigate global trade turbulence. Several tech firms informed CNBC that they're using AI to visualize global supply chains and understand the effects of U.S. President Donald Trump's reciprocal tariffs.

Salesforce announced the development of an import specialist AI agent that can instantly process changes for all 20,000 product categories in the U.S. customs system and then act on them to help navigate tariff system changes. According to Eric Loeb, executive vice president of government affairs at Salesforce, the speed and complexity of tariff changes make it nearly impossible for businesses to keep up manually. He added that companies previously relied on in-house experts.

Firms report that AI systems enable them to make decisions on adjustments to global supply chains faster. Andrew Bell, chief product officer at Kinaxis, said that manufacturers and distributors are using his firm's machine learning to assess their products and the materials that go into them, in addition to external signals like news articles and macroeconomic data.

Bell told CNBC that with this information, simulations can be done to assess the impact of switching to another part if a particular part has a significant tariff.

Trump's tariffs have forced companies to rethink their supply chains and pricing, with companies such as Walmart and Nike already raising prices on some products. In 2024, the U.S. imported about $3.3 trillion of goods, according to census data.

Zack Kass, a futurist and former head of OpenAI's go-to-market strategy, stated that uncertainty from the U.S. tariff measures presents AI's moment to shine. He added that AI provides an alternative proposal in a world where employing a lot of people overnight isn't possible.

Nagendra Bandaru, managing partner and global head of technology services at Wipro, said clients are using the company's AI solutions to pivot supplier strategies, adjust trade lanes, and manage duty exposure dynamically as policy landscapes evolve. Wipro uses AI systems, including large language models, traditional machine learning, and computer vision techniques, to inspect physical assets in cross-border transit.

Wipro stated that firms using its AI products to navigate Trump's tariffs range from a Fortune 500 electronics manufacturer with factories in Asia to an automotive parts supplier exporting to Europe and North America.

Bandaru stated that AI enhances trade policy strategy by transforming global trade from a reactive challenge into a proactive, data-driven advantage.

A Capgemini report published in January stated that nearly three-quarters of business leaders ranked AI and generative AI in their top three technologies for investment in 2025.

Ajay Agarwal, partner at Bain Capital Ventures, said that AI solutions' success depends on the quality of the data they access. Agarwal said that FourKites, one of his portfolio companies, uses supply chain network data with AI to help firms understand the logistics impacts of adjusting suppliers due to tariffs. He added that switching suppliers may reduce tariff costs but might increase lead times and transportation costs.

Agarwal also noted that the volatility of the tariffs has severely impacted rates and capacity available in both the ocean and domestic freight networks.