There’s a crazy theory circulating on social media that Donald Trump’s new tariff plan might have been cooked up by none other than an AI chatbot.

It seems some users on X discovered that leading chatbots like ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude, and Grok all spit out the same formula for calculating tariffs when prompted.

ffs it's true

i was able to duplicate it in ChatGPT. it also told me that this idea hadn't been formalized anywhere before, and that it was something it came up with

ffs Trump admin is using ChatGPT to determine trade policy 😂😭 https://t.co/wAcORePTqy

— DCinvestor (@iamDCinvestor) April 3, 2025

Texts

After Trump announced his tariffs in the White House Rose Garden on April 2, users started experimenting with ChatGPT.

NFT collector DCinvestor claimed he could replicate Trump’s plan with a simple prompt.

“The Trump admin is using ChatGPT to determine trade policy!”

Now, it could all be a coincidence, but it’s hard not to raise an eyebrow.

The prompt used by crypto trader Jordan Fish, aka Cobie, asked ChatGPT to calculate tariffs so the U.S. could level the trade deficit playing field with a minimum 10% tariff.

Journal of Public Economics editor Wojtek Kopczuk also tried it and wasn’t impressed.

“I think they asked ChatGPT to calculate the tariffs from other countries, which is why the tariffs make absolutely no sense.”

Reality

On the other hand, Trump’s tariffs aren’t just a joke. They’re real, and they’re hitting hard.

The formula, as explained by Flexport CEO Ryan Petersen, is straightforward, take the U.S. trade deficit with each country and divide it by U.S. imports from that country. Sounds simple, but the impact is anything but.

Countries like China, Japan, and the European Union are facing tariffs as high as 34%, 24%, and 20%, respectively.

Crypto

And the crypto market? It’s been a disaster. After Trump’s announcement, Bitcoin plummeted by $5,500 to $82,277 before recovering slightly. That’s a 5% dip. So, did AI really influence U.S. trade policy?

Maybe, maybe not. But this tariff plan is no joke, it’s a real-world experiment with real-world consequences. And if AI did play a role, well, that’s a whole new level of sh*tshow.

So, the next time you hear about AI changing the world, remember, it might just be changing tariffs too.

And if you’re wondering how this all affects you, just think about your favorite imported goods. They might just get a lot pricier.

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