Antitrust is back in the spotlight—not just as a response to Big Tech and Big Pharma’s market power, but as a crucial site for debating the future of democracy. Can policymakers move beyond a concern for simple market competition and address deeper problems of concentrated economic power, organizational innovation, and democratic participation in the economy? Some argue that aggressive antitrust overreaches and threatens to stifle innovation, while others see it as an opportunity to link innovation to deeper and more equitable democratization. Still others contend that antitrust alone is not enough to make the economy more prosperous and democratic and call for broader political intervention (industrial policy, revival of trade unions, stronger regulation) to combat the growth of inequality and oligarchy. This conference gathered leading scholars to discuss the contemporary politics of antitrust and possibilities for creating a more innovative, participatory, equitable, and democratic political economy.

Schedule

9:00 am
Panel 1: Antitrust, Antimonopoly and Democracy
Introduction by Gary Herrigel
Richard John, History, Columbia University
Laura Phillips-Sawyer, School of Law, University of Georgia

11.00 am
Coffee Break

11.30 am
Panel 2: Democracy, Law, and Policy Architectures
Ganesh Sitaraman, Vanderbilt Law School
Brian Callaci, Open Markets Institute
Chase Foster, European & International Studies, King’s College London

1.30 pm
Lunch Break

2.30 pm
Panel 3: Cases of Industry Creation
Gerald Berk, Political Science, University of Oregon
Marc Schneiberg, Sociology, Reed College
Georg Rillinger, MIT Sloan School