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CUHK Summer School of Asia in the Global Economy 2026
New digital technologies have fundamentally reshaped how economic activity is organized globally. For example, online gig platforms and cloud services now enable task-based labor and data to flow across borders with unprecedented ease. This transformation raises critical questions: What are the welfare implications of these new digital platforms and infrastructure? How do policies—on data protection, antitrust, and innovation subsidies—shape where innovation occurs and influence the geography of economic activity in our digitally connected world?
This workshop brings together leading economists to explore these intersections: examining the infrastructure of the digital economy, the welfare effects of platform-based market designs, and the policy environments that channel innovation across borders. Through lectures and discussions, participants will engage with frontier research on the economics of data and innovation, focusing on how digital institutions organize production, competition, and knowledge creation in the global economy—and how economic policy can best respond to these transformations.
Date
June 3-5, 2026
Venue
The Chinese University of Hong Kong
Objectives
The 2.5-day summer school is designed to immerse graduate students in cutting-edge research in digitalization and innovation, with a special emphasis on the Asian-Pacific Regions. This program provides a dynamic platform where distinguished scholars can present emerging challenges in the research topic and share their latest research with graduate students. Additionally, PhD students will have the chance to receive insightful feedback on their research ideas during dedicated mentoring and presentation sessions. This summer school is a unique opportunity for PhD students to explore advanced topics and methodologies in their field.
Activity
There will be presentations/lectures in the morning of each day:
- El Hadi Caoui, University of Toronto
- Mert Demirer, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
- Leon Musolff, University of Pennsylvania
- Jidong Zhou, Yale University
We will organize small group mentoring sessions in the afternoons.
Co-organizers:
- Jin Liu, University of Pennsylvania
- C. Matthew Shi, The Chinese University of Hong Kong
- Yulu Tang, London School of Economics
- Daniel Yi Xu, Duke University (visiting CUHK)
Local Organizing Committee:
- Siying Cao, The Chinese University of Hong Kong
- Dan Lu, The Chinese University of Hong Kong
- Michael Zheng Song, The Chinese University of Hong Kong
Scope of Support
For each selected participant, lunch and 3-night accommodation will be provided.
Application
Interested PhD students should submit the application here by March 20, 2026.
Students are required to combine the following documents in one PDF and upload it to the online platform (Size Limit: 10 MB).
- CV
- Writing Sample
- Contact of at least 2 Referees
Inquiries
Please contact Miss Aiji Au at economics@cuhk.edu.hk
Further details about the previous conferences, please refer to the following –
2025 CUHK Summer School of Asia in the Global Economy – Trade and Environment
