Innovation Files: Where Tech Meets Public Policy

The Case for Smarter AI Regulation, With Matt Perault

Regulating how AI is used—not how it's built—is the only way to protect innovation and give small startups a fair shot. Rob and Jackie sit down with Matt Perault, Head of Artificial Intelligence Policy at Andreessen Horowitz, to discuss the significant burden regulatory frameworks can place on smaller tech companies and the critical role of government in AI regulation.  MENTIONED * Ezra Klein and Derek Thompson, Abundance [https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Abundance/Ezra-Klein/9781668023488], (Simon and Schuster, March 2025). * Robert D. Atkinson and Meghan Ostertag, “Congress Should Fully Fund NSF’s TIP Directorate to Make America More Competitive Versus China [https://itif.org/publications/2025/06/30/congress-should-fully-fund-nsf-tip-directorate/],” (ITIF, June 2025). * Robert D. Atkinson, “2025 Bromley Memorial Lecture: US Science Policy at a Crossroads [https://itif.org/events/2025/03/25/2025-bromley-memorial-lecture/],” (ITIF, March 2025). RELATED * Matt Perault, “A Policy Blueprint for US Investment in AI Talent and Infrastructure [https://a16z.com/a-policy-blueprint-for-us-investment-in-ai-talent-and-infrastructure/],” (Andreessen Horowitz, Marc 2025).

mRNA and the Future of Personalized Medicine, With Andrew Geall and Deborah Barbara

Continued innovation and investment is vital to maintaining the U.S.'s leadership in the biopharma sector. Rob and Jackie sit down with Andrew Geall, Chief Development Officer at Replicate Bioscience, and Deborah Barbara, strategic advisor to Primrose Bio, to discuss the development and potential of mRNA as the fourth pillar of pharmaceutical innovation. MENTIONED * Sandra Barbosu, “Harnessing AI to Accelerate Innovation in the Biopharmaceutical Industry [https://itif.org/publications/2024/11/15/harnessing-ai-to-accelerate-innovation-in-the-biopharmaceutical-industry/],” (ITIF, November 2024) *  Richard Fleischer, dir. Fantastic Voyage, (20th Century-Fox, 1966). RELATED * Stephen Ezell and Meghan Ostertag, “The Bayh-Dole Act’s Role in Stimulating University-Led Regional Economic Growth [https://itif.org/publications/2025/06/16/bayh-dole-acts-role-in-stimulating-university-led-regional-economic-growth/],” (ITIF, June 2025)

Decoding the Techno-Economic Power Struggle, With Alex Capri

There is a clear linkage between technology and national security, economic strength and social stability. Rob and Jackie sit down with Alex Capri, author of Techno-Nationalism: How It's Reshaping Trade, Geopolitics and Society to discuss how nations leverage technological innovation for national security and stability and how that applies to evolving United States-China competition. MENTIONED * Alex Capri, Techno-Nationalism: How It's Reshaping Trade, Geopolitics and Society [https://www.wiley.com/en-us/Techno-Nationalism%3A+How+It's+Reshaping+Trade%2C+Geopolitics+and+Society-p-9781119766179], (Wiley, December 2024). * Orville Schell and John Delury, Wealth and Power: China's Long March to the Twenty-first Century [https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/161758/wealth-and-power-by-orville-schell-and-john-delury/], (Random House, July 2013). * Robert D. Atkinson, “Liberation Day: Explaining Trump’s Tariffs [https://itif.org/publications/2025/04/04/liberation-day-explaining-trumps-tariffs/],” (ITIF, April 2025)

New Podcast: The Trade War With Stan McCoy

In the inaugural episode of the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation's Trade War Podcast, host Stan McCoy discusses recent developments and challenges in global trade policy with Ambassador Susan C. Schwab and Rob Atkinson. The conversation covers the latest U.S. tariffs on steel and aluminum, the implications of President Trump's protectionist stance, and the strategic importance of recognizing China as the main adversary. Subscribe and rate The Trade War Podcast: YouTube [https://youtu.be/9txznbuinkQ] | Apple [https://podcasts.apple.com/mn/podcast/the-trade-war-podcast-with-stan-mccoy/id1797873379] | Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/show/5bEgmtj4DfKWMGYE3d9OcE?si=d158c936b050447b] | Buzzsprout Home [https://tradewarpodcast.buzzsprout.com/]

The United States Needs a Robust Industrial Policy, With Marc Fasteau and Ian Fletcher

What is the correct economic strategy for a nation? Rob and Jackie sat down with Marc Fasteau and Ian Fletcher, authors of Industrial Policy for the United States, to discuss how industrial policy, done right, will develop the kind of economy the United States wants. MENTIONED * Marc Fasteau and Ian Fletcher, Industrial Policy for the United States [https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/industrial-policy-for-the-united-states/4B6B8D37A0B1FE5C69B897924977D88B#fndtn-information], (Cambridge University Press, November 2024). * Ian Fletcher, Free Trade Doesn't Work: What Should Replace It and Why [https://www.freetradedoesntwork.com/], (Coalition for a Prosperous America, February 2011). * “Are You a “Marketist” or a “Producerist” on Economic Policy? [https://itif.org/publications/2024/11/15/producerist-economics-quiz/],” (ITIF, December 2024).