The 2026 Annual Conference of the European Association for Research in Industrial Economics (EARIE) took place at the University of Mannheim from August 26 to 28. The conference was organized by ZEW – Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research, in cooperation with the University of Mannheim and the MaCCI Association.

The conference brought together 427 registered participants and featured a broad international program covering current research across all areas of Industrial Organization. The local organizing committee was co-chaired by MaCCI members Bernhard Ganglmair, Martin Peitz, and Nicolas Schutz, while Tobias Salz (MIT) chaired the scientific committee.

The scientific program featured keynote addresses by Myrto Kalouptsidi (Harvard University) on “Transportation, Infrastructure and Trade Disruptions” and Jidong Zhou (Yale University) on “Personalization and Competition.” EARIE President Alessandro Gavazza (London School of Economics) delivered the presidential address on “Bank Deposit Pricing in the Euro Area.”

In addition, the conference featured six invited sessions on a variety of topics, including buyer power, platforms, mergers and retail markets, and AI and pricing. The contributed program comprised a grand total of 336 papers organized into 116 parallel sessions. Of these, 79 papers were presented in Rising Stars sessions showcasing some of the best research by junior economists in Industrial Organization.

During the conference, MaCCI hosted a lunchtime fireside talk on “The New Draft EU Merger Guidelines: Key Changes and the Role of Economic Research.” The event featured a conversation with Otto Toivanen (Aalto University) and Hans Zenger (European Commission), moderated by Martin Peitz.

MaCCI researchers were strongly represented throughout the scientific program. Presentations were given by Lance Gui, Paul Wegener, Kevin Remmy, Volker Nocke, Pia Ennuschat, Robin Ng, Francisco Poggi, Atabek Atayev, Elu von Thadden, Eliza Stenzhorn, Nicolas Schutz, Bernhard Ganglmair, and Michelle Sovinsky.

The MaCCI Association also invited all conference participants to the Welcome Reception and Dinner, held on August 26 in the historic Palace Catacombs at the University of Mannheim.

With hundreds of researchers gathering in Mannheim for three days of presentations and discussions, the conference provided a major opportunity to bring the international Industrial Organization community to Mannheim and to showcase the breadth of competition and Industrial Organization research within MaCCI.