As digital platforms continue to reshape markets, the intersection of competition, innovation, and regulation demands nuanced understanding. On April 17–18, 2025, Digital Data Design Institute’s Platform Lab and Harvard Business School hosted the third annual Digital Competition and Tech Regulation Conference, convening over 70 leading academics, industry practitioners, and policymakers from around the world. With participants from universities including MIT, Yale, London Business School, and the University of Toronto, alongside leaders from Google, Amazon, Uber, Airbnb, and Analysis Group, the event offered a rare, high-level forum for cross-sector dialogue. Marking its most successful iteration yet, the event reflected the community’s growing commitment to advancing this vital conversation.
Over two dynamic days, attendees explored the evolving digital landscape through a series of paper sessions, industry panels, and interactive discussions. Topics spanned from strategic issues around data and network effects to the complex roles that platforms play in markets like e-commerce, media, and advertising. Privacy concerns, misinformation, vertical integration, and the unintended consequences of digitally mediated markets were also front and center.
A key theme emerging from the sessions was the critical interaction between research, policy, and industry. As one participant noted, “One needs to hear from policy and industry not only to be relevant but also to be innovative.” This sentiment was echoed in vibrant discussions following presentations on subjects such as online preferences for privacy, algorithmic pricing, and consumer engagement with politics online.
“One needs to hear from policy and industry not only to be relevant but also to be innovative.”
The conference’s structure—blending senior scholars, junior researchers, and seasoned industry experts—was particularly effective in catalyzing thoughtful debate and fostering mentorship. Many junior scholars had the rare opportunity to receive feedback from prominent senior faculty, enhancing the research community’s collective knowledge and strengthening future scholarship.
Panels on antitrust policy and AI regulation offered particularly timely insights. Discussions emphasized the need for regulatory frameworks that are both adaptive and thoughtful, balancing the imperatives of innovation with the necessity of safeguarding competitive markets. The presence of both private sector leaders and policymakers enriched these conversations, grounding theoretical models in real-world complexities.
By convening a truly interdisciplinary group, the Digital Competition and Tech Regulation Conference reinforced that the future of digital markets will be shaped at the nexus of academic rigor, industry practice, and public policy. As the digital economy continues to evolve, events like this serve as a critical force for surfacing new ideas, forging partnerships, and guiding the next generation of research and regulation.
