Discouraging consumption of sin goods – taxes versus nudges | with Dmitry Taubinsky
Game Changer - the game theory podcast
Release Date: 03/25/2024
From Clicks to Chatbots: The Future of Online Advertising | with Dirk Bergemann
Game Changer - the game theory podcast
In this episode we dive deep into the economics of digital markets with Dirk Bergemann. We discuss how search platforms like Google created entirely new marketplaces around user attention and private information, what makes digital markets so unique, and how auction design evolved to match the scale and complexity of internet advertising. Dirk also shares insights from his own research on how platforms collect and use user information and gives an economist’s perspective on how emerging technologies - like large language models - might reshape the future of search and advertising. ...
info_outline
Strange Bedfellows: The Game Theory Behind Counterintuitive Alliances | with David Pinsof
Game Changer - the game theory podcast
In this episode, we talk to David Pinsof about the surprising ways people form their beliefs and build alliances. Drawing on his survey with Cards Against Humanity, he shares how people often hold contradictory views and what this reveals about group coordination. We also dive into his game-theoretic model of coalition-building, explore how humor functions as a coordination tool, and discuss the deeper logic behind seemingly irrational behavior. David Pinsof is a behavioral scientist whose work combines evolutionary psychology and game theory, to understand...
info_outline
Man vs. model – game theoretic insights on AI in auctions | with Vitali Gretschko
Game Changer - the game theory podcast
In this episode we are talking to Vitali Gretschko about how generative AI can be used to simulate strategic behaviour in auctions. We explore where AI tools can support auction design, where they fall short, and how practitioners should interpret simulation results. Vitali also explains why AI is best seen as a co-intelligence that needs expert guidance. Vitali Gretschko is Professor for sustainable Market Design at the University of Münster. His research focuses on auction theory, market design, and applying game theory to practical strategic problems.
info_outline
Punishment or Pettiness? The Game Theory Behind Spite | with Rory Smead
Game Changer - the game theory podcast
In this episode, our guest Rory Smead shares insights on spite and what game theory can teach us about this puzzling behaviour. He explains why people sometimes punish others even at a cost to themselves, and whether this can be understood through more than just fairness. Using the ultimatum game as a central example, he discusses how spite can influence decision-making and what this reveals about both human and animal behaviour. Rory Smead is Professor of Philosophy and the Ronald L. and Linda A. Rossetti Professor for the Humanities at Northeastern University. His research...
info_outline
When Bonuses Backfire: Rethinking Attendance Incentives | with Timo Vogelsang
Game Changer - the game theory podcast
In this episode we are talking to Timo Vogelsang about why incentives aimed at reducing absenteeism can sometimes have the opposite effect. Based on a Field Experiment in a German supermarket chain, he explains why offering bonuses for attendance backfired. We also explore how incentives can unintentionally shape beliefs and undermine motivation. Timo Vogelsang is Associate Professor of Managerial Accounting at the Frankfurt School of Finance & Management. His research focuses on behavioural economics and public policy, with a particular interest in how incentives shape motivation...
info_outline
Too Sure for Our Own Good? The Hidden Cost of Overconfidence | with Philipp Strack
Game Changer - the game theory podcast
In this episode, we sit down with Philipp Strack to explore the hidden consequences of overconfidence. From distorted learning to discrimination and systemic bias, Philipp explains to us how overestimating ourselves can quietly shape our decisions, relationships, and even society — and why it’s not always a bad thing. Philipp Strack is a professor of Economics at Yale University with a secondary appointment as Professor of Computer Science. His research focus lies in decision-making and behavioral economics in dynamic contexts as well as in concepts like information cost and...
info_outline
The marriage penalty – how the church rewired cooperation networks | with Jonathan Schulz
Game Changer - the game theory podcast
In this episode we explore how historical kinship structures, shaped in part by decisions of the Catholic Church, may have fundamentally changed the way humans are able to cooperate on a large scale. Using game theoretic concepts like reciprocity and network structure, we uncover how bans on cousin marriages and even modern Facebook data can help explain patterns of trust and cooperation today. Jonathan Schulz is Assistant Professor in the Department of Economics at George Mason University and Co-Principal Investigator of the interdisciplinary Historical Psychology Project. His research...
info_outline
Why Climate Agreements Fail: An Innovative Solution Based on Mechanism Design | with Klaus M. Schmidt
Game Changer - the game theory podcast
In this episode together with our guest Klaus M. Schmidt, we explore the economic challenges behind global climate agreements. We discuss why past agreements like the Kyoto Protocol and the Paris Agreement struggled to deliver the desired results and examine how a new negotiation design centered on a uniform CO₂ price could lead to better outcomes. Klaus also shares insights from experimental studies testing this approach in practice. Klaus M. Schmidt is an economics professor at Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, and an expert in social preferences and contract theory, among...
info_outline
Globalization and Protectionism – A Game Theoretic View | with Claudia Steinwender
Game Changer - the game theory podcast
In this episode, we explore how globalization has shaped trade and innovation—and why rising protectionism is challenging its benefits. What happens when countries impose tariffs and trade restrictions? And how can policymakers navigate the balance between open markets and domestic interests? Claudia Steinwender is a Professor of Economics at Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich. Her research focuses on international trade, innovation, and economic history, with a particular emphasis on how globalization shapes firm behavior and trade dynamics.
info_outline
How to achieve cooperation: Learnings from fieldwork with the Turkana people | with Sarah Mathew
Game Changer - the game theory podcast
In this episode we are speaking with Sarah Mathew about cooperation – especially how cooperation is achieved in the absence of institutions. Sarah gives some theoretical background, shares the concept of free rider problems and the relationship to punishment. She then illustrates the background based on her fieldwork: She has studied how the Turkana people achieve cooperation when going on raids with possibly even deadly consequences for individual warriors. Sarah Mathew is Associate Professor at the School of Human Evolution and Social Change at Arizona State University. Her...
info_outlineIn this episode, we explore with Dmitry Taubinsky economic approaches on regulating sin goods such as alcohol or sugary beverages. We discuss the classical approach of taxation and Dmitry compares the approach to nudging approaches. Our discussion leads us into many further economic details: From externalities and internalities, over the question who bears the tax burden to the price elasticity of demand. Dmitry explains to us, why these effects are relevant, how they relate to each other and how they also affect the optimal taxation.
Dmitry Taubinsky is an associate professor of economics at UC Berkeley and a research associate at the NBER. His research interests include Behavioral Economics and Public Economics with a special focus on the intersection of both fields using a combination of theory, experiments, and surveys as methods for the analysis of his research questions. His papers referenced in the podcast on sin taxes and nudging can be found here and here.