The RFBerlin Applied Economics Seminar series brings leading researchers to Berlin to share their latest work and engage with our community. We are pleased to welcome Lukasz Rachel for this session, where he will share his work.

Lukasz Rachel is an Assistant Professor of Economics at University College London (UCL). He is the Co-Director of the UCL Policy Lab for Economics. In recent years, he has been a postdoctoral fellow in the economics department at Princeton University and a Fulbright Scholar at Harvard. Professor Rachel is member of RFBerlin Network. From 2008 to 2021, he worked at the Bank of England. His research interests are in macroeconomics. His work focuses on topics such as economic growth, the impact of technology on inequality, monetary and fiscal policy, and the politics and economics of sanctions.

Event Topic:

Leisure-Enhancing Technological Change

Is there too much or too little innovation in leisure technologies, products supplied free in exchange for attention? Indirect monetization through advertising drives a wedge between the private and social value of leisure innovation. Quantitatively, leisure innovation is under-provided, but traditional innovation more severely so. The rise of the attention economy since 2000 occurred largely at the expense of traditional innovation, and lowered welfare, even as leisure innovation increased towards its efficient level. A feasible policy package — an advertising-revenue tax paired with a universal research subsidy — addresses costs while preserving benefits, raising welfare by over 3 percent.

Event Details:

Date: 13 October 2026
Time: 14:00–15:15

Participation: the seminar is open to the public and targeted to an academic audience.

If you have any questions or need further information, feel free to contact us using the form or email us at [email protected]