The Grim Reaper of Big Tech Arrives... Biden Nominates 32-Year-Old Female Professor as FTC Chair

Rina Khan Appointed as Professor at Columbia University Law School

▲Rina Khan [Image source=AP News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwon Jae-hee] Lina Khan (32), a Columbia Law School professor known as the "Big Tech Reaper," is set to become the head of the U.S. antitrust agency, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). This is expected to accelerate the Biden administration's plans, which have promised Big Tech regulation since the presidential campaign.

On the 15th (local time), the Wall Street Journal (WSJ), citing sources, reported that U.S. President Joe Biden has nominated the progressive antitrust expert Khan as the FTC Chair.

Khan, 32 years old this year, is expected to set the record as the youngest FTC Chair if officially appointed.

Khan was nominated as an FTC commissioner in March, and on the same day, the U.S. Senate confirmed her with an overwhelming vote of 69 in favor and 28 against.

Specializing in competition law, Khan rose as a star in the antitrust field after publishing a thesis titled "Amazon's Antitrust Paradox" as her law school graduation paper in 2017.

In this thesis, Khan argued that the view focusing on short-term consumer benefits, which holds that a company monopolizing the market does not violate antitrust laws as long as it does not affect product prices, is not suitable for companies like Amazon.

She warned that if Amazon is not regulated because it has lowered prices, its dominance will only grow stronger.

Subsequently, Khan participated in the House Judiciary Committee's antitrust subcommittee and authored critical reports on the abuse of market dominance by Amazon, Apple, Facebook, and Alphabet (Google). Based on this investigation, the U.S. House introduced strong antitrust laws that could forcibly break up Big Tech companies.

Reacting to Khan's nomination as FTC Chair, Senator Elizabeth Warren, a leading figure in the U.S. progressive camp, called it "tremendous news," welcoming the opportunity for Khan to lead the FTC in fighting monopolistic practices that threaten the economy, society, and democracy, and to bring about significant structural change.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.