Under the heavy pressure of Trump's tariffs, the healthcare giant Medtronic Plc (MDT.US) will focus on manufacturing optimization and AI.

Global medical device giant Medtronic Plc (MDT.US) is adjusting its global medical device manufacturing layout and global footprint to deal with the potential impact of US President Trump's tariff policies. Company executives revealed in a media interview on Tuesday that this strategic adjustment aims to build a more resilient global supply chain system. The multinational medical device company, which produces everything from insulin pumps to high-end smart surgical Siasun Robot & Automation, is closely monitoring the impact of Trump's tariff policies on its production facilities in Mexico. According to the latest annual report, Medtronic Plc's Mexican factory ranks third in its global medical device manufacturing map. Medtronic Plc (Medtronic) focuses on designing, developing, manufacturing, and selling various medical devices and technology products, including cardiovascular devices (such as pacemakers, defibrillators), neurostimulation devices, diabetes management products (such as insulin pumps), spinal and surgical equipment, among others. It is one of the world's largest medical device providers, committed to significantly improving the quality of life for patients and continuously improving the accuracy of medical diagnostics with high-tech medical device products. "We are continuously exploring ways to significantly optimize our global medical device manufacturing network," said Ken Washington, Chief Technology Officer of Medtronic Plc, during the BioAsia Biotechnology Summit in Telangana, India. Recently, the Trump administration announced tariffs of up to 25% on imports from Mexico and Canada, with the planned tax scheduled to take effect on March 4th, providing a window for trilateral negotiations. When asked whether India will be included in the company's manufacturing strategic adjustments and optimization plan, Washington did not comment. It is worth noting that the company had already established the largest research and development center outside the US in Telangana, India in 2021. After a meeting between US President Trump and Indian Prime Minister Modi earlier this month, the two countries agreed to initiate early trade agreement negotiations to resolve tariff disputes. US Consul General in Hyderabad, Jennifer Larson, stated, "An important outcome of the talks is the launch of the US-India Trust Initiative, which will promote collaboration in key and emerging technologies - areas that both countries urgently need." In response to the Trump administration's threat of imposing "25% or higher" tariffs on semiconductor and pharmaceutical imports, Washington emphasized that the company will adhere to its long-standing core strategy. "As a multinational with 75 years of history, we understand the survival rule of navigating development directions during political and economic fluctuations." "If you do not learn to navigate the ebb and flow of different political platforms, a company like Medtronic Plc cannot survive for 75 years," Washington said in an interview. On the technology strategy level, Washington highlighted Medtronic Plc's artificial intelligence layout. He predicted that positions related to digitization and artificial intelligence (AI) will see significant opportunities for expansion, with increased research and development investments, but did not disclose specific strategic budget details. "We have established a strategic consensus for everyone to embrace AI, which will become the new norm for business operations," Washington said in the interview. "We expect everyone to embrace AI as a way of conducting business." A research report by GMI Research shows that when analyzing highly recurring medical data, AI often executes analysis and summary tasks in a shorter time and at a lower cost, significantly optimizing the connection between patients, doctors, and hospital management personnel. The organization expects AI to be fully applied in medical imaging and rapid diagnosis, drug discovery, medical surgical assistance (Siasun Robot & Automation), gene-level precision medicine, drug simulation screening, protein structure prediction, and other fields, drastically reducing product innovation cycles, significantly improving the accuracy of modern medicine, and reaching a larger patient population in the same amount of time.