Erik Tuchtfeld is a legal researcher at the Max Planck Institute for Comparative Public Law and International Law. He heads the Berlin-based interdisciplinary humanet3 group which analyzes, deconstructs, and contributes to initiatives aiming at a human-centered digital transformation. The group’s main focus is the digital public space, as space for debate and expressing opinion on the internet. In his PhD, Erik is investigating how European regulation, such as the Digital Services Act (DSA), changes the very architecture of the digital public space, and, thus, influences human behavior. His main research interests are freedom of expression and the right to privacy online.

Prior to starting his PhD, Erik studied law at Heidelberg University, the Universidad de Buenos Aires, and the University of Glasgow. He is an associate editor at Verfassungsblog and co-host of the Völkerrechtspodcast.

Erik is the Co-Chair of D64 – Center for Digital Progress, a German grassroots NGO with over 750 members working to realize the fundamental values of freedom, justice, and solidarity in the digital transformation.