Flexport’s Ryan Petersen: Tech's Trade Expert On Tariff Refunds, AI Agents And A Unicorn Turnaround

Whenever global trade or shipping are in the news, the tech industry turns to Flexport CEO Ryan Petersen. But when Petersen returned to Flexport, the $8B-valued logistics unicorn he founded, in 2023, his company was in need of a turnaround. Customers were fleeing; morale had plunged. On this episode of The Upstarts Podcast, Petersen talks about his Upstart Moment: helping Flexport win again by focusing on customers. He also shares how AI agents have transformed how Flexport ships products, why "nobody cares" about startups by default, and how he hopes to return $50 billion in tariff refunds to Americans. For more, visit https://www.upstartsmedia.com/ Season 1 of the Upstarts Podcast is presented by Mercury: https://mercury.com/ Produced & edited by Eric Johnson from LightningPod: https://lightningpod.fm/