TNB Tech Minute: Trump Administration Announces New Drone Tariffs

[00:00:01] Here's your Morning TNB Tech Minute for Friday, August 14. I'm Danny Lewis for The Wall Street Journal. President Trump is introducing a new slate of tariffs targeted at imported drones and their components, particularly those from China. According to the proclamation, the duties are tiered according to drone capacity and their place of origin. Large drones with militarily sensitive abilities are subject to a 100% tariff, while smaller drones and components without the same national security implications

[00:00:29] face a 25% levy. U.S. allies will have lower tariff rates. In a statement, the White House said the new tariffs would protect U.S. national and economic security as it looks to counter Chinese dominance in the commercial drone market. The decision boosted shares of U.S.-based drone companies in morning trading. Chinese AI firm DeepSeq is hiking prices for its flagship models amid fierce competition. According to a post on its website, DeepSeq's new peak-hour pricing will rise over four times current levels,

[00:00:59] starting August 16, though its latest pricing remains well below its U.S. and Chinese rivals. The company is in talks with prospective investors for a new fundraising round after it raised more than $7.4 billion in June, and is planning to go public in Shanghai as early as next year. And social media platform Reddit is joining the S&P 500. S&P Dow Jones Indices, which reviews the make-ups of various indexes, says Reddit will replace Avalon Bay Communities,

[00:01:27] a real estate investment trust being bought by fellow S&P 500 member Equity Residential, creating a vacancy in the index. Reddit shares are up more than 13% in morning trading. That's your TNB Tech Minute. Join us again this afternoon for more. .