In this episode, Fredrik Erixon hosts a conversation on how the EU’s Digital Markets Act is being tested by the rapid development of generative and agentic AI. He is joined by legal scholar Thibault Schrepel, Associate Professor of Law at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Faculty Affiliate at Stanford CodeX, and Director of Stanford Computational Antitrust, together with ECIPE Analyst Dyuti Pandya.

They discuss why the DMA’s fixed “core platform service” categories may struggle to capture foundation models that evolve across multiple uses and markets. The conversation explores key tensions around data access, interoperability and self-preferencing, as well as recent developments involving Apple’s Siri AI, Google’s AI Overviews and Meta/WhatsApp. The discussion asks whether AI competition policy should rely less on rigid ex ante rules and more on flexible, conduct-based enforcement that can respond to harms as they emerge.

You can watch a video recording of this conversation here.

You can read a transcript here.

In this episode, Matthias Bauer speaks with Kay Jebelli (Kayvan Hazemi Jebelli), Vice President for Europe at the Chamber of Progress, about the real-world impact of the EU’s Digital Markets Act (DMA) and its controversial expansion into next-generation enterprise cloud services. 

Drawing on his background as a competition lawyer and recent market research, Jebelli argues that while European policymakers view the regulatory instrument as future-proof, its rigid enforcement is creating unintended friction for everyday consumers and delaying the rollout of advanced AI technologies. Focusing on cloud platforms, he explains how the European Commission is shifting away from traditional competition law and consumer welfare principles toward an agenda aimed at tech sovereignty and industrial policy.

The conversation explores the unintended consequences of platform regulation, how the UK's flexible and participatory approach to cloud markets sharply diverged from the EU's gatekeeper model, the role of institutional independence within DG Competition, and the potential for transatlantic economic fallout.

You can watch a video recording of this conversation here.

You can read a transcript here.

In this episode, Erik van der Marel speaks with Erik Canton, Deputy Chief Economist at DG Research and Innovation and Deputy Head of Unit for Common Research and Innovation Strategy & Foresight Service at the European Commission, about the often overlooked relationship between technology adoption and labour market institutions.

Drawing on his recent paper, Employment Protection, Adjustment Costs, and Technology Adoption, Canton argues that the key policy challenge is not how innovation is created, but how effectively firms adopt and integrate new technologies. Focusing on AI, he explains how stringent employment protection legislation (EPL) can impose significant legacy and restructuring costs on large, productive incumbent firms, creating a structural barrier to technology adoption and productivity growth.

The conversation explores Europe's productivity paradox, why startups are often better positioned to embrace technological change, the strengths of Nordic flexicurity models, and how AI is reshaping labour market dynamics by shifting attention from workers' skill levels to the specific tasks they perform.

You can watch a video recording of this conversation here.

You can read a transcript of the chat here.

In this episode, Oscar Guinea speaks with legal scholar Silvia Nuzzo about the evolving role of free trade agreements (FTAs) in the global trading system. Drawing on Silvia's book, Technical Barriers to Trade, Preferential Integration and the Law of the WTO, the conversation explores whether FTAs weaken or reinforce the WTO framework. The experts discuss technical barriers to trade, regulatory cooperation, and how agreements such as CETA, USMCA, and the EU's trade negotiations with Mercosur, India, and Australia are shaping modern trade governance. The episode also examines the rise of transactional trade policy, shifting geopolitical priorities, and the reforms that could help the World Trade Organization remain relevant in an increasingly fragmented global economy.

You can watch a video recording of this conversation here.

You can read a transcript here.

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this podcast are personal and should not be attributed to the European Commission.

In this episode, Andrea Dugo speaks with Milja Kalliosaari, Government Relations Manager at IQM Quantum Computers, about Europe's position in the global race for quantum technologies. They discuss how quantum computing is moving from research to real-world deployment, the role of Finland and the Helsinki region in developing one of the world's leading quantum ecosystems, and the factors behind IQM's success. The conversation explores the importance of public procurement, industrial capacity, and scaling European innovation, as well as the challenges posed by fragmentation, regulation, and technological sovereignty. Looking ahead, they examine the policy priorities needed to ensure Europe remains competitive in the emerging quantum economy.

You can watch a video recording of this conversation here.

You can read a transcript here.

In this episode, Philipp Lamprecht speaks with Bernd Christoph Ströhm, Senior Fellow at ECIPE and an expert at WIIW, about the critical geoeconomic and geopolitical shifts reshaping the Western Balkans. They explore how the region is currently facing a “structural shock” as a generation of doctors, engineers, and innovators migrates to the EU, driven by domestic corruption and a lack of meritocracy. Ströhm argues that this brain drain is hollowing out public services and slowing GDP growth, creating a vicious cycle that further weakens local institutions.

The conversation also tackles the “integration fatigue” stalling EU enlargement. While Montenegro and Albania are making progress, others remain trapped by bilateral identity disputes, most notably North Macedonia, where trust has eroded following sacrifices made for the Prespa Agreement. As the EU’s decision-making remains slow, the experts warn that Russia and China are actively filling the gap through narrative warfare and strategic infrastructure loans. Ultimately, they conclude that the EU must adopt a more urgent and strategic approach to securing its immediate neighbourhood before its influence is permanently diminished.

You can watch a video recording of this conversation here.

You can read a transcript here.

In this episode, Fredrik Erixon speaks with Tengiz Pkhaladze, Senior Fellow and Director of ECIPE’s Bridging Frontlines programme, about how the EU’s neighbouring regions have become the space where the Union’s geopolitical credibility is being tested in real time. They argue that Ukraine, Moldova, Georgia, the Western Balkans, and the Black Sea region should be understood as one strategic frontier rather than as separate policy files. This is where questions of sovereignty, security, and geopolitical alignment are playing out most acutely. 

Pkhaladze, author of the recent paper Europe's Frontier Countries: The EU's Geopolitical Test, highlights three structural weaknesses: fragmented policy tools, slow decision making, and unresolved conflict dynamics. While the EU has made progress through sharper strategic thinking, renewed enlargement momentum, and stronger defence initiatives, ambition still exceeds delivery. Until that gap is closed, others will continue to take advantage of it.

You can watch a video recording of this conversation here.

You can read a transcript here.