Adam Thierer

Biography

Adam Thierer is a senior fellow for the Technology & Innovation team. He works to make the world safe for innovators and entrepreneurs by pushing for a policy vision that is rooted in the idea of “permissionless innovation.”

Prior to R Street, Thierer spent 12 years as a senior fellow at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University. Before the Mercatus Center, he served as the president of the Progress and Freedom Foundation. Thierer has also worked for the Adam Smith Institute, the Heritage Foundation and the Cato Institute. He has published 10 books on a wide range of topics, including online child safety, internet governance, intellectual property, telecommunications policy, media regulation and federalism.

Thierer has a master’s degree in international business management and a bachelor’s degree with a double major in political science and journalism.

Recent contributions

America's Litigation Addiction Threatens Its AI Leadership

Economic Dynamism
November 11, 2025
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Adam Thierer

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America's Litigation Addiction Threatens Its AI Leadership

November 11, 2025
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Civitas Outlook
The Trump National Security Strategy is Good, Bad, and Ugly All at Once

Like the classic Clint Eastwood western, the Trump Administration should have titled its National Security Strategy: “The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly.”

Civitas Outlook
Beyond the Border: How Extraterritorial State Laws Risk America’s AI Ambitions

True policy innovation in AI requires states to respect the boundaries of their authority and allow the freedom of movement for both people and resources that defines a truly national market.

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