# Creative Electron's Dr. Bill Cardoso is Cautious and Curious - EMS@C-Level, Season 23, Ep 1

- Show: [EMS@C-LEVEL](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/ems-c-level)
- Published: 2023-01-09
- Length: 17m
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/ems-c-level/2023-01-09-creative-electrons-dr-bill-cardoso-is-cautious-and-curious-ems-c-level-season-23

## Summary

Dr. Bill Cardoso, Founder and CEO of Creative Electron, warns that 2023 will be a challenging year characterized by drying capital, rising interest rates, and a potential inventory overhang following the artificial demand of 2022. He highlights the risk of 'aquaplaning' into 2023 on the back of 2022's exceptional performance, noting that purchase orders may not reflect real demand and could unravel. Cardoso also discusses the lopsided labor market, where high-tech layoffs contrast with severe shortages in assembly and service roles, and expresses skepticism about government-led reshoring efforts.

## Chapters

- [0:07](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/ems-c-level/2023-01-09-creative-electrons-dr-bill-cardoso-is-cautious-and-curious-ems-c-level-season-23#t=7) Introduction: Dr. Bill Cardoso and Creative Electron
- [0:41](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/ems-c-level/2023-01-09-creative-electrons-dr-bill-cardoso-is-cautious-and-curious-ems-c-level-season-23#t=41) Economic Downturn, Capital Access, and Inventory Overhang
- [5:02](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/ems-c-level/2023-01-09-creative-electrons-dr-bill-cardoso-is-cautious-and-curious-ems-c-level-season-23#t=302) Purchase Orders vs. Real Demand and the Bullwhip Effect
- [8:21](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/ems-c-level/2023-01-09-creative-electrons-dr-bill-cardoso-is-cautious-and-curious-ems-c-level-season-23#t=501) Reshoring, Cash Flow Risks, and Government Policy
- [10:37](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/ems-c-level/2023-01-09-creative-electrons-dr-bill-cardoso-is-cautious-and-curious-ems-c-level-season-23#t=637) The Lopsided Labor Market and Tech Layoffs
- [13:35](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/ems-c-level/2023-01-09-creative-electrons-dr-bill-cardoso-is-cautious-and-curious-ems-c-level-season-23#t=815) Digital Transformation, Automation, and Industry Verticals

## Topics

- [Sourcing & supply chain](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/sourcing-and-supply-chain)
- [Hiring & workforce](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/hiring-and-workforce)
- [Pricing, margins & unit economics](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/pricing-and-unit-economics)
- [Factory operations & automation](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/factory-operations)
- [Policy, trade & tariffs](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/policy-trade-and-tariffs)

## Most relevant to

early-stage companies

## Mentioned

- Creative Electron (company)
- Peloton (company)
- Koh Young (company)
- CloudNC (company)
- Tesla (company)
- SpaceX (company)
- Twitter (company)
- Facebook (company)
- Microsoft (company)
- Amazon (company)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [The State of Manufacturing: Resilience in Uncertain Times with Willem Sundblad](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/manufacturing-happy-hour/2023-02-07-the-state-of-manufacturing-resilience-in-uncertain-times-with-willem-sundblad) (Manufacturing Happy Hour)
- [Rebuilding Projects with Dave Young](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2022-08-28-rebuilding-projects-with-dave-young) (The Amp Hour)
- [307 - Prepare for the depression of the 2030's and other takeaways from Day 1 at the TLMI conference](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/people-of-packaging/2025-03-10-307-prepare-for-the-depression-of-the-2030s-and-other-takeaways-from-day-1-at-th) (People of Packaging)
- [EP 186: Mobile Bottlenecks, Skyrocketing AI CapEx, and the Compute Crunch](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-circuit/2026-08-03-ep-186-mobile-bottlenecks-skyrocketing-ai-capex-and-the-compute-crunch) (The Circuit)
- [EcoWoke and Going Broke](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2020-02-03-ecowoke-and-going-broke) (The Amp Hour)

## Citing this page

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