What Donald Trump’s Presidency Could Mean for the Tech Sector

As of this morning, several hours after the U.S. presidential race was called for Donald Trump, some of the tech world's leading voices had yet to weigh in on what those results could mean for Silicon Valley in particular and innovation in general. But many news outlets are saying the impacts could be disruptive in ways that the otherwise disruption-loving tech sector might not like.

Meanwhile, venture capitalist and PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel -- one of the few high-profile technology sector entrepreneurs to back Trump (pictured above) during the unprecedented 2016 campaign -- said today in a statement to Business Insider that the president-elect "has an awesomely difficult task, since it is long past time for us to face up to our country's problems. We're going to need all hands on deck."

Trump had sent a number of worrisome messages to technology industry leaders over the course of the campaign. For example, during Apple's court battle over the FBI's order to help it break the security of an iPhone seized after last December's mass shooting in San Bernardino, Trump called for an Apple boycott. His stances on tech worker visas, net neutrality and encryption could also have ramifications for tech businesses.

Plans for Cyber Defense Review

In the policy statements on his campaign Web site, Trump has said he wants to order an immediate review of all U.S. cyber defenses and vulnerabilities, introduce a "pro-growth" tax plan and launch a new framework for government regulations, along with an "America-first trade policy."

Responding to a set of questions on science and technology from Scientific American earlier this fall, Trump has also said he would promote innovation by reducing market and trade barriers, bringing together key stakeholders to determine priorities for research, and examining which federal regulations need to be changes. On a...