Join Us!
How can regulation and enforcement take account of systemic actors in the digital economy
Enforcing digital rules against very large platforms large tech companies is a moving target. This PhD project will look at the existence of systemic actors in the digital economy and their implications for enforcement dynamics. The digital economy is characterized by the emergence of actors that have a significantly broader systemic impact on the way in which compliance with digital rules is organized and enforced than just their own operations. Examples from the literature include smartphone ecosystems, and infrastructural cloud services. This project will study the extent to which the systemic influence of these actors is recognized in and how the enforcement of digital rules can optimally approach these actors, considering broader impacts on compliance and enforcement.
This is what you will do
The doctoral project will examine how regulators adapt enforcement strategies in response to systemic actors under the DSA, DMA, AI Act and GDPR, studying how initial enforcement attempts evolve as regulators learn from complex platform ecosystems. You will trace enforcement processes across cases and jurisdictions and interview those involved. The work will build a typology of regulatory learning patterns concerning systemic actors, best-practice enforcement learning cycles and a framework for adaptive enforcement.
You will work on a legal PhD thesis at the Institute for Information Law (IViR), Amsterdam Law School, University of Amsterdam, as part of the REGULAIRE project. The PhD will provide the opportunity to contribute to the activities of the DSA Observatory and the Amsterdam Law School Sectorplan initiative Democratic Digital Transformation (2026-2031) and offers a focused route into information law, platform regulation and enforcement research.
About REGULAIRE
REGULAIRE (Regulatory Learning for the Governance of Transformative Technologies) is a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions Doctoral Network bringing together 15 doctoral candidates at ten European universities to study how regulation can learn to govern transformative technologies such as AI, quantum computing and neurotechnology. Its projects examine how regulators sense emerging problems early, how balanced interventions encourage learning without overcorrection or underreaction, how such interventions alter institutional capacities, and how feedback can be institutionalised so that insights travel across organisations and jurisdictions. Across the network, regulatory learning means treating regulation as a learning architecture that generates, tests and refines knowledge about what works, rather than as one-off rulemaking. Each researcher joins an international cohort, receives supervision across institutions and takes part in three residential summer schools, methods workshops, monthly paper development seminars and joint work with regulators, standardisation bodies and international organisations. Every project includes a planned three-month intersectoral secondment. The network is coordinated by Prof. Urs Gasser at the Technical University of Munich (TUM).
More specifically, you are expected to:
- Refine the research questions and design with the supervision team, and prepare ethics, data-management and open-science materials.
- Collect, manage and analyse research data using the approved project-specific methods.
- Complete a doctoral thesis and related research outputs under the doctoral programme and the REGULAIRE plan.
- Take part in local and network-wide training, cohort activities, network reviews, dissemination and practitioner engagement, including three residential summer schools and monthly paper development seminars.
- Undertake the planned three-month intersectoral secondment;.
- Contribute to the research and activities of the DSA Observatory;
- Contribute to research integrity, equality and diversity, open science and FAIR data practices.
What we ask of you
- A Master's degree (or an equivalent qualification giving access to doctoral studies) in law, political science, media and communication studies, or related legal, social science and interdisciplinary fields, completed by the start date.
- A demonstrable interest in studying the relationship of law to digital technologies and services;
- Skills or a demonstrable interest in qualitative regulatory process tracing and interviews.
- Excellent command of written and spoken English.
- Willingness to engage in international mobility, including the planned secondment and network-wide activities.
- Fulfilment of the MSCA eligibility conditions listed below.
- A creative mind and strong critical and analytical skills;
- Collegial attitude and capacity to work not only independently but also in teams;
- Ability and willingness to organize workshops, lectures, and similar events (demonstrable experience with these activities a plus).
If the vacancy appeals to you, but you are doubting whether you might be THE person we are looking for, please do apply? We encourage all qualified applicants, including minorities, women, people with disabilities, and members of other groups underrepresented in academia. We wish to create a research group that consists of persons who each contribute in their unique way to the team. Complementarity and not homogeneity is what we are looking for.
Supervision, training and mobility
Your supervision team will consist of Supervision team: Prof. Joris van Hoboken (University of Amsterdam), Prof. Natali Helberger (University of Amsterdam), an external supervisor from the REGULAIRE project network, and a sectoral mentor at the anticipated secondment host.
The secondment enables the candidate to observe how a leading digital regulator engages with systemic actors, providing insight into adaptive enforcement cycles, learning barriers and evolving supervisory strategies.
The candidate will be part of a supervisory team consisting of the primary supervisor at the host institution, an academic co-supervisor at a partner institution in another country, and a sectoral mentor at the secondment host. Candidates meet the primary supervisor at least monthly and the full team at least four times per year; progress and training are recorded in a personal Career Development Plan. Network-wide training includes three residential summer schools (regulatory learning and foresight at TUM; methods and analytics at BI Norwegian Business School; academic writing and impact at the University of St. Gallen), monthly paper development seminars, and annual network reviews aligned with major community events. Candidates obtain a minimum of twenty ECTS through local and network-wide training, of which at least ten from network-wide provision.
This is what we offer you
A temporary contract for 38 hours per week for the duration of 4 years (the initial contract will be for a period of 12 months and after satisfactory evaluation it will be extended for a total duration of 4 years). The preferred starting date is January 1st 2027. This should lead to a dissertation (PhD thesis). We will draft an educational plan that includes attendance of courses and (international) meetings. We also expect you to assist in teaching undergraduates and master students.
The gross monthly salary, based on 38 hours per week and dependent on relevant experience, ranges between €3.204 to € 4.051 (scale P). This does not include 8% holiday allowance and 8,3% year-end allowance. The UFO profile 'PhD student' is applicable. The Collective Labour Agreement of Universities of the Netherlands is applicable. The UvA offers excellent possibilities for further professional development and education.
What else do we offer
- a position where own initiative and input are highly valued;
- an enthusiastic and dynamic team that is open to new colleagues;
- an inspiring academic and international working environment in the heart of Amsterdam.
You will work in this team
The University of Amsterdam is the largest university in the Netherlands, with the broadest spectrum of degree programmes. It is an intellectual hub with 39,000 students, 6,000 employees and 3,000 doctoral students who are all committed to a culture of inquiring minds.
With over 5,000 students and more than 500 staff members, the Amsterdam Law School is one of the larger law faculties in the Netherlands. We educate lawyers who know how to apply the law effectively with the aim of making a real contribution to solving social problems. The Amsterdam Law School stands for progressive and trail-blazing education and research, for stronger legal institutions, solutions to social problems and a better and juster society.
The Institute for Information Law (IViR), officially established in 1989, is one of the largest research centers in the field of information law in Europe, and one of the largest of its kind in the world.
The Institute engages in cutting-edge research into fundamental and topical aspects of information law, and provides a forum for critical debate about the social, cultural and political aspects of regulating information markets.
Want to know more about our organisation? Read more about working at the University of Amsterdam.
Are you interested in the functioning of law in relation to big tech? Do you want to research how law and enforcement of digital rules can take engage systemic actors in the digital economy? And would you like to become part of a European network of researchers studying how regulation can learn to govern transformative technologies such as AI, digital platforms, quantum computing and neurotechnology. Then the Phd project ‘Systemic Actors and the Enforcement of Digital Rules’ may be right for you.
Join Us!
How can regulation and enforcement take account of systemic actors in the digital economy
Enforcing digital rules against very large platforms large tech companies is a moving target. This PhD project will look at the existence of systemic actors in the digital economy and their implications for enforcement dynamics. The digital economy is characterized by the emergence of actors that have a significantly broader systemic impact on the way in which compliance with digital rules is organized and enforced than just their own operations. Examples from the literature include smartphone ecosystems, and infrastructural cloud services. This project will study the extent to which the systemic influence of these actors is recognized in and how the enforcement of digital rules can optimally approach these actors, considering broader impacts on compliance and enforcement.
This is what you will do
The doctoral project will examine how regulators adapt enforcement strategies in response to systemic actors under the DSA, DMA, AI Act and GDPR, studying how initial enforcement attempts evolve as regulators learn from complex platform ecosystems. You will trace enforcement processes across cases and jurisdictions and interview those involved. The work will build a typology of regulatory learning patterns concerning systemic actors, best-practice enforcement learning cycles and a framework for adaptive enforcement.
You will work on a legal PhD thesis at the Institute for Information Law (IViR), Amsterdam Law School, University of Amsterdam, as part of the REGULAIRE project. The PhD will provide the opportunity to contribute to the activities of the DSA Observatory and the Amsterdam Law School Sectorplan initiative Democratic Digital Transformation (2026-2031) and offers a focused route into information law, platform regulation and enforcement research.
About REGULAIRE
REGULAIRE (Regulatory Learning for the Governance of Transformative Technologies) is a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions Doctoral Network bringing together 15 doctoral candidates at ten European universities to study how regulation can learn to govern transformative technologies such as AI, quantum computing and neurotechnology. Its projects examine how regulators sense emerging problems early, how balanced interventions encourage learning without overcorrection or underreaction, how such interventions alter institutional capacities, and how feedback can be institutionalised so that insights travel across organisations and jurisdictions. Across the network, regulatory learning means treating regulation as a learning architecture that generates, tests and refines knowledge about what works, rather than as one-off rulemaking. Each researcher joins an international cohort, receives supervision across institutions and takes part in three residential summer schools, methods workshops, monthly paper development seminars and joint work with regulators, standardisation bodies and international organisations. Every project includes a planned three-month intersectoral secondment. The network is coordinated by Prof. Urs Gasser at the Technical University of Munich (TUM).
More specifically, you are expected to:
- Refine the research questions and design with the supervision team, and prepare ethics, data-management and open-science materials.
- Collect, manage and analyse research data using the approved project-specific methods.
- Complete a doctoral thesis and related research outputs under the doctoral programme and the REGULAIRE plan.
- Take part in local and network-wide training, cohort activities, network reviews, dissemination and practitioner engagement, including three residential summer schools and monthly paper development seminars.
- Undertake the planned three-month intersectoral secondment;.
- Contribute to the research and activities of the DSA Observatory;
- Contribute to research integrity, equality and diversity, open science and FAIR data practices.
What we ask of you
- A Master's degree (or an equivalent qualification giving access to doctoral studies) in law, political science, media and communication studies, or related legal, social science and interdisciplinary fields, completed by the start date.
- A demonstrable interest in studying the relationship of law to digital technologies and services;
- Skills or a demonstrable interest in qualitative regulatory process tracing and interviews.
- Excellent command of written and spoken English.
- Willingness to engage in international mobility, including the planned secondment and network-wide activities.
- Fulfilment of the MSCA eligibility conditions listed below.
- A creative mind and strong critical and analytical skills;
- Collegial attitude and capacity to work not only independently but also in teams;
- Ability and willingness to organize workshops, lectures, and similar events (demonstrable experience with these activities a plus).
If the vacancy appeals to you, but you are doubting whether you might be THE person we are looking for, please do apply? We encourage all qualified applicants, including minorities, women, people with disabilities, and members of other groups underrepresented in academia. We wish to create a research group that consists of persons who each contribute in their unique way to the team. Complementarity and not homogeneity is what we are looking for.
Supervision, training and mobility
Your supervision team will consist of Supervision team: Prof. Joris van Hoboken (University of Amsterdam), Prof. Natali Helberger (University of Amsterdam), an external supervisor from the REGULAIRE project network, and a sectoral mentor at the anticipated secondment host.
The secondment enables the candidate to observe how a leading digital regulator engages with systemic actors, providing insight into adaptive enforcement cycles, learning barriers and evolving supervisory strategies.
The candidate will be part of a supervisory team consisting of the primary supervisor at the host institution, an academic co-supervisor at a partner institution in another country, and a sectoral mentor at the secondment host. Candidates meet the primary supervisor at least monthly and the full team at least four times per year; progress and training are recorded in a personal Career Development Plan. Network-wide training includes three residential summer schools (regulatory learning and foresight at TUM; methods and analytics at BI Norwegian Business School; academic writing and impact at the University of St. Gallen), monthly paper development seminars, and annual network reviews aligned with major community events. Candidates obtain a minimum of twenty ECTS through local and network-wide training, of which at least ten from network-wide provision.
This is what we offer you
A temporary contract for 38 hours per week for the duration of 4 years (the initial contract will be for a period of 12 months and after satisfactory evaluation it will be extended for a total duration of 4 years). The preferred starting date is January 1st 2027. This should lead to a dissertation (PhD thesis). We will draft an educational plan that includes attendance of courses and (international) meetings. We also expect you to assist in teaching undergraduates and master students.
The gross monthly salary, based on 38 hours per week and dependent on relevant experience, ranges between €3.204 to € 4.051 (scale P). This does not include 8% holiday allowance and 8,3% year-end allowance. The UFO profile 'PhD student' is applicable. The Collective Labour Agreement of Universities of the Netherlands is applicable. The UvA offers excellent possibilities for further professional development and education.
What else do we offer
- a position where own initiative and input are highly valued;
- an enthusiastic and dynamic team that is open to new colleagues;
- an inspiring academic and international working environment in the heart of Amsterdam.
You will work in this team
The University of Amsterdam is the largest university in the Netherlands, with the broadest spectrum of degree programmes. It is an intellectual hub with 39,000 students, 6,000 employees and 3,000 doctoral students who are all committed to a culture of inquiring minds.
With over 5,000 students and more than 500 staff members, the Amsterdam Law School is one of the larger law faculties in the Netherlands. We educate lawyers who know how to apply the law effectively with the aim of making a real contribution to solving social problems. The Amsterdam Law School stands for progressive and trail-blazing education and research, for stronger legal institutions, solutions to social problems and a better and juster society.
The Institute for Information Law (IViR), officially established in 1989, is one of the largest research centers in the field of information law in Europe, and one of the largest of its kind in the world.
The Institute engages in cutting-edge research into fundamental and topical aspects of information law, and provides a forum for critical debate about the social, cultural and political aspects of regulating information markets.
Want to know more about our organisation? Read more about working at the University of Amsterdam.
If you feel the profile fits you, and you are interested in this PhD position, we look forward to receiving your application. You can apply online via the link above. We will accept applications until Monday 2 November 2026.
Applications should include the following information (submitted in one pdf):
- A letter of motivation (max 1 page, font size 12, singled spaced) explaining why you are a good candidate for carrying out this research project;
- A full academic CV (2 pages max., font size 12, single spaced);
- A writing sample, such as a Master’s thesis chapter or paper (20 pages max.);
- The names and contact details of two referees, including your thesis supervisor, who may be approached by the selection committee.
Only complete applications received within the response period via the link below will be considered.
For questions about the position, please contact:
Joris van Hoboken
Professor of Information Law, University of Amsterdam
E: j.v.j.vanhoboken@uva.nl
A knowledge security check can be part of the selection procedure.
(for details: national knowledge security guidelines)
MSCA eligibility
Applicants may be of any nationality. To be eligible for MSCA funding, the selected candidate must, on the first day of MSCA employment: (i) not hold a doctoral degree; candidates who have successfully defended a doctoral thesis but have not yet formally received the degree are not eligible; (ii) comply with the MSCA mobility rule, meaning they must not have resided or carried out their main activity (work, studies, etc.) in the Netherlands for more than 12 months during the 36 months immediately preceding that date, excluding compulsory national service, short stays such as holidays, and time spent in a procedure for obtaining refugee status under the Geneva Convention; and (iii) be enrolled in, or meet the conditions required for timely enrolment in, the doctoral programme leading to the degree specified in this notice. The appointment is conditional on documentary verification of these conditions and fulfilment of the host institution's doctoral admission requirements.
The UvA is an equal-opportunity employer. We prioritize diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for everyone. We value a spirit of enquiry and perseverance, provide the space to keep asking questions, and promote a culture of curiosity and creativity.
