How AI Will Impact Small Business in America

Key Takeaways

There's been a really big focus in DC of the macro level, largecale infrastructure, the world's biggest companies, critically the leaders in the American technology stack, and then how the economy will follow suit. But actually, other parts of the conversation are about how the broader American economy uh from small medium businesses to mom and pop shops are going to be impacted by the AI action plan. Therefore, I'm delighted to speak to Kelly Leler, who who's director of the SBA. I mean, that's how you framed it on stage, right? that within your area of responsibility and those parts of the economy that aren't necessarily participating on stage, AI will have an impact. I wondered if I could just start by asking you, having read the AI action plan in full, what is the core tenate of it for you that you are most impacted by? >> Well, AI is a tool for Main Street and we've seen that as I've gone across the country, nearly two dozen states, walking factory floors. Most manufacturing in America is small business factories less than 1500 people mostly less than 200 people. We're gonna going we're going to be able to onshore and reshore whole industries thanks to a AI and this uh advanced manufacturing that AI enables for small businesses. Uh, for example, I saw a bike factory, our first mass production bike factory that this country has had in decades after the entire industry got shipped overseas with 50 or 60 employees compared to the thousands it used to take. This is coming to small town America. It's going to create great jobs, a new collar boom, and we're going to see AI enable small business formation like that. When the president and the adviser Paul wrote up the AI action plan and when you read it, do you get the sense that they had Main Street in mind? Do you see it in the written word? >> Absolutely. President Trump knows that small business is big business. And really, if you look at America, 34 million small businesses, about 20 or 30,000 big businesses, America is comprised of small businesses. And so AI is going to enable them to compete on a level playing field, not just with larger businesses, but with businesses around the world. And again, reshoring and onshoring is incredibly important to America's economic stability and our national security and our growth. And President Trump through this winning the AI race effort is going to make sure that our country is turbocharged for growth across Main Street. >> The heavy emphasis is on deregulation, cutting red tape, and then energy. What concerns do you have about that, you know, in as it relates to protecting some of those portions of Main Street in your do domain or do you see it as encouraging? >> It's incredibly encouraging. The number one concern of small business today is access to a skilled workforce. We have 7.8 million jobs available in this country. President Trump has solved inflation, regulation, taxes, but skilled workforce now is the challenge. And AI is going to enable them to leapfrog the need to continue to hire and hire. Now they get to productivity and really 10x their results. So it's incredibly pro main street to have AI come to the forefront in America. >> Kelly Leler is the director of the SBA and among all of the policy makers here and titans of industry representing more the main street focus which has been part of the conversation here at the winning the AI summit in Washington DC.