Responsible innovation in generative AI requires an in-depth understanding of the ethical risk that these models pose. Generative AI promises automated, effective influence at scale. It can be used for good but poses a significant manipulation risk. That risk has not yet examined in detail yet,...

Market regulation has traditionally focused on disclosure duties, and in recent years much attention has been given to nudges. However, there are increasing doubts about the effectiveness of disclosures and nudges. In response, some conclude that regulation should be abandoned altogether. An...

A statement or action can be said to be manipulative if it does not sufficiently engage or appeal to people's capacity for reflective and deliberative choice. One problem with manipulation, thus understood, is that it fails to respect people's autonomy and is an affront to their dignity. Another...

Libertarian paternalism, as advanced by Cass Sunstein, is seriously flawed, but not primarily for the reasons that most commentators suggest. Libertarian paternalism and its attendant regulatory implications are too libertarian, not too paternalistic, and as a result are in considerable tension...

Some people believe that nudges undermine human agency, but with appropriate nudges, neither agency nor consumer freedom is at risk. On the contrary, nudges can promote both goals. In some contexts, they are indispensable. There is no opposition between education on the one hand and nudges on...

In diverse areas – from retirement savings, to fuel economy, to prescription drugs, to consumer credit, to food and beverage consumption – government makes personal decisions for us or helps us make what it sees as better decisions. In other words, government serves as our agent. Understood...

Is nudging unethical? Is choice architecture a problem for a free society? This essay defends seven propositions: (1) It is pointless to object to choice architecture or nudging as such. Choice architecture cannot be avoided. Nature itself nudges; so does the weather; so do customs and...

Findings in behavioral science, including psychology, have been influencing policies and reforms in many nations. “Choice architecture” can affect outcomes even if material incentives are not involved. In some contexts, default rules, simplification, and uses of social norms have been found...

This essay considers the role of reputational information in our marketplace. It explains how well-functioning marketplaces depend on the vibrant flow of accurate reputational information, and how misdirected regulation of reputational information could harm marketplace mechanisms. It then...

“Free” products have exploded in popularity along with widespread Internet adoption—but many of them are not truly free. Customers often trade their attention or personal information to access zero-price products. This exchange dynamic brings zero-price markets within the scope of...