Prof. Dr. Ariel Pakes | Pharmaceutical Markets |Best Paper Award
Professor, Harvard University ,United States
Ariel Pakes is a world-class scholar with a track record of transformative research, methodological rigor, and policy relevance. His body of work has profoundly influenced how economists analyze markets, competition, pricing, and regulation.
Profile:
🎓 Education:
Ariel Pakes earned his Bachelor of Arts and Master of Arts degrees from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem in 1971 and 1973, respectively. He then pursued further studies at Harvard University, obtaining another M.A. in 1976 and completing his Ph.D. in 1979. His doctoral thesis, titled “Economic Incentives in the Production and Transmission of Knowledge: An Empirical Analysis,” was supervised by Zvi Griliches. Wikipedia
💼 Professional Experience:
Pakes currently holds the position of Thomas Professor of Economics at Harvard University. Prior to this, he served as the Charles and Dorothea Dilley Professor of Economics at Yale University from 1997 to 1999 and held various academic roles at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Throughout his career, he has been actively involved with several research institutions, including the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER), where he has been a Research Associate since 1983.
🛠️ Skills and Methodological Contributions:
Pakes is renowned for developing empirical methods to analyze market dynamics and policy impacts. Notably, he co-developed the Berry-Levinsohn-Pakes (BLP) model for demand estimation and the Olley-Pakes method for estimating production functions. His work has significantly influenced the analysis of industries such as automotive, healthcare, telecommunications, and energy. Additionally, his methodologies have been adopted by government agencies and private firms for policy evaluation and market analysis.
🏆 Awards and Honors:
Ariel Pakes has received numerous accolades recognizing his contributions to economics:
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Frisch Medal (1986)
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Fellow of the Econometric Society (1988)
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Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (2002)
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Distinguished Fellow of the Industrial Organization Society (2007)
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Jean-Jacques Laffont Prize (2017)
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Election to the National Academy of Sciences (2017)
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BBVA Foundation Frontiers of Knowledge Award in Economics, Finance, and Management (2018)
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Distinguished Fellow of the American Economic Association (2019)
🔬 Research Focus:
Pakes’s research centers on developing empirical tools to assess how markets respond to environmental and policy changes. His work includes analyzing the effects of mergers, deregulation, and innovation on market outcomes. He has applied his methodologies to various sectors, providing insights into consumer behavior, firm dynamics, and policy implications. His research has been instrumental in shaping modern empirical industrial organization.
Publications:
Policy options for the drug pricing conundrum
Authors: Kate Ho, Ariél Pakes
Year: 2025
Journal: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
Citations: 0
Authors: John Asker, Chaim Fershtman, Ariél Pakes
Year: 2024
Journal: Journal of Economics and Management Strategy
Citations: 6
Authors: Ariél Pakes, Jack R. Porter
Year: 2024
Journal: Quantitative Economics
Citations: 2
Access: Open access
4. Inference for Linear Conditional Moment Inequalities
Authors: Isaiah Andrews, Jonathan Roth, Ariél Pakes
Year: 2023
Journal: Review of Economic Studies
Citations: 3
Access: Open access
5. On the misuse of regressions of price on the HHI in merger review
Authors: Nathan H. Miller, Steven T. Berry, Fiona Scott-Morton, Andrew Sweeting, Marta E. Wosinska
Year: 2022
Journal: Journal of Antitrust Enforcement
Citations: 7
Access: Open access
Conclusion:
Ariel Pakes stands as an ideal candidate for the “Research for Best Paper Award.” His award-winning publications, methodological contributions, and influence on policy-relevant economic modeling make him not only a suitable but a model recipient of such recognition. His research legacy continues to shape entire subfields of economics.7