Tomomi Tanaka, Ph.D.
Founder, Safety by Design Lab

Ex- Director of Safety by Design (Match Group), Senior Economist (World Bank), Assistant Professor (Arizona State University), Chief Economic Advisor (Venture Capital)

With over 20 years of experience in behavioral economics and online safety, I am dedicated to creating safe online communities.

As Director of Safety by Design at Match Group, I launched and led safety by design programs across the company’s diverse portfolio of brands, embedding safety at every stage of the product life cycle.

I assessed the safety risks associated with developing advanced applications using large language models (LLMs), positioning Match Group as a leader in responsible AI use within the online dating sector.

I also advised startups, conducting due diligence and providing post-acquisition support to ensure they deliver safe services.

Previously, as a senior economist at the World Bank, I advised governments on data analysis and economic policy while managing machine learning projects.

As an assistant professor at Arizona State University, I published research in top journals on behavioral economics, experimental economics, game theory, and market design.

At Safety by Design Lab, I leverage my background to create innovative solutions that embed safety in every layer of technological innovation.

Selected Publications

Behavioral Economics / Experimental Economics

Tanaka, T., & Camerer, C. F. (2016). Trait perceptions influence economic out-group bias: lab and field evidence from Vietnam. Experimental Economics, 19, 513-534.

Linardi, S., & Tanaka, T. (2013). Competition as a savings incentive: A field experiment at a homeless shelter. Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization , 95, 240-251.

Tanaka, T., Camerer, C. F., & Nguyen, Q. (2010). Risk and time preferences: Linking experimental and household survey data from Vietnam. American Economic Review, 100(1), 557-571.

Machine Learning

Engstrom, R., Pavelesku, D., Tanaka, T., & Wambile, A. (2019, May). Mapping poverty and slums using multiple methodologies in Accra, Ghana. In 2019 Joint Urban Remote Sensing Event (JURSE) (pp. 1-4). IEEE.

Matching Theory / Market Design

Hatfield, J. W., Plott, C. R., & Tanaka, T. (2016). Price controls, non-price quality competition, and the nonexistence of competitive equilibrium. Games and Economic Behavior, 99, 134-163.

Hatfield, J. W., Plott, C. R., & Tanaka, T. (2012). Understanding price controls and nonprice competition with matching theory. American Economic Review, 102(3), 371-375.

Causal Inference

Dang, H. A., Raju, D., Tanaka, T., & Abanokova, K. (2024). Tackling the last hurdles of poverty entrenchment: An investigation of poverty dynamics for Ghana during 2005/06-2016/17. IZA Discussion Paper No. 16738

Sato, R., Jamison, J., McGee, K., Oseni, G., Perng, J., & Tanaka, T. (2022). The relationships between adverse life events, depression, economic activities, and human capital investment in Nigeria. Medicine, Conflict and Survival, 38(3), 170-183.

Ofori Adofo, J., Tarui, N., & Tanaka, T. (2022). The local economic effects of natural resources evidence from Ghana. World Bank Policy Research Working Paper no. WPS 10154