Professor Ali Makhdoumi reveals why your friend's social media activity might be compromising your privacy, even when you share nothing at all

Every time your colleague shares their location data or a friend posts their workout routine, they're inadvertently exposing details about you–even if you've never agreed to share your data. This hidden web of data spillovers means companies can predict your preferences, behaviors, and personal information simply by analyzing the digital footprints of people in your network.

In this episode, Professor Ali Makhdoumi of Duke University's Fuqua School of Business discusses his research on personal data markets, based on his paper "Too Much Data: Prices and Inefficiencies in Data Markets," co-authored with 2024 Nobel Prize winner Daron Acemoglu. He explains that what we think of as personal, private data is actually more like a public good. Platforms can infer your information indirectly through your connections, creating what economists call "data externalities."

Makhdoumi explores why current data markets are so structurally inefficient. When your data can be predicted from others' sharing decisions, you lose bargaining power and companies acquire personal information at depressed prices. This creates market dynamics where users share more data than is socially optimal, often receiving compensation that doesn't reflect the full social costs.

The implications extend beyond individual privacy concerns. Makhdoumi's research shows that under certain conditions, shutting down data markets entirely would improve societal welfare. For business leaders, this challenges conventional thinking about data as a valuable corporate asset and raises questions about sustainable data strategies.

Makhdoumi proposes innovative solutions, including "decorrelation" techniques that could allow beneficial data sharing while protecting privacy. He also outlines policy approaches that could help realign market incentives with social benefits. The research offers a framework for companies thinking more strategically about data acquisition, user trust, and the long-term sustainability of data-driven business models.

Duke Fuqua Insights features digestible conversations with our faculty about the most impactful research from their careers, including studies they teach in Fuqua classes. New episodes every other week in season.

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Ronnie Chatterji, Professor at Duke University's Fuqua School of
Business and Chief Economist at OpenAI, joins Jenny Laurence, MBA '26 to discuss his recent research paper analyzing over a million ChatGPT conversations to uncover patterns in where artificial intelligence is making impacts in our homes, our work, and our lives.

Duke Fuqua Insights features digestible conversations with our faculty about the most impactful research from their careers, including studies they teach in Fuqua classes. New episodes every other week in season.

For more from Duke Fuqua, visit us on LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook, Bluesky, and the Duke Fuqua Insights newsletter.

Trump's push to end quarterly reporting could reshape American business. Professor Rahul Vashishtha explains what research shows about the trade-offs.

When companies report earnings more frequently, they make different investment choices, often abandoning profitable long-term projects that don't pay off quickly. This behavioral shift sits at the heart of President Trump's renewed call to end quarterly reporting requirements in favor of six-month reporting cycles.

In this episode, Professor Rahul Vashishtha discusses his research examining what happened during the historical shift from annual to semi-annual to quarterly reporting between 1950 and 1970.

Vashishtha found that when companies were required to report more often, they significantly reduced their investments in long-term projects. More concerning, this investment decline was accompanied by lower productivity, reduced sales growth, and weaker financial performance. This suggests companies weren't just eliminating waste, but abandoning profitable opportunities.

This "managerial myopia" was most pronounced in industries where investments take years to pay off, precisely where quarterly earnings reports are least effective at capturing true value creation. As Vashishtha explains, "When you start increasing the frequency of your performance measures, what you do really is create a premature evaluation of decisions which are best considered over a much longer horizon."

The episode explores both sides of the reporting frequency debate, examining the trade-offs between transparency and long-term value creation. Vashishtha also offers practical advice for corporate leaders and investors on encouraging long-term thinking, including cultivating patient capital, strategic communications, and thoughtful incentive design.

Record date: September 16, 2025

Duke Fuqua Insights features digestible conversations with our faculty about the most impactful research from their careers, including studies they teach in Fuqua classes. New episodes every other week in season.

For more from Duke Fuqua, visit us on LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook, Bluesky, and the Duke Fuqua Insights newsletter.