Helen Shuxuan Zeng

Ph.D., Carnegie Mellon University
M.A., Columbia University
B.Sc., the University of Hong Kong

Research Expertise
Digital Economics, Technology and Policy

Areas of Expertise
Economics, Technology Management

Helen Zeng's research lies at the intersection of digital economics, technology, and policy. Her research vision is to bridge technology and policy by engaging firms, institutions, and regulators in understanding how to create and deliver “virtuous" digital products for business and society. Her work aims to explore the role of stakeholder accountability in the context of new technological innovations.

Specifically, her research seeks to address three key questions:

1. What are the societal impacts of technological innovation and emerging technologies?
    
2. Why should businesses and other relevant institutions invest in responsible innovation and engage early in regulatory considerations?
    
3. How should entrepreneurs and regulators adapt to technological advancements to safeguard against potential harms while ensuring technology serves the common good?

Zeng employs mixed methods in her research, including econometrics, structural models, and causal inference with machine learning.

She is a member of the Global Association of Human Trafficking Scholars (GAHTS) and a K&L Gates Presidential Fellow in Ethics and Computational Technologies. Her research won the 2024 William W. Cooper Doctoral Dissertation Award, the 2022 George Duncan Award for Excellence in Doctoral Studies for the Second Research Paper, and the 2020 Suresh Konda Best First Student Research Paper Award from Heinz College.

Zeng earned her Ph.D. in Information Systems and Management from Heinz College of Information Systems and Public Policy at Carnegie Mellon University. Before her Ph.D., she completed a Bachelor of Science in Statistics and Mathematics from the University of Hong Kong and a Master of Arts in Quantitative Methods in Social Sciences from Columbia University.