This is the first solo episode of Scaling Theory, where I take a deep dive into the literature. Building on a working paper titled “Adaptive Regulation,” I explore why “future-proof” laws so often fail in the face of rapid technological change, and how complexity science can guide us toward rules that adapt to the things they regulate. Drawing on recent EU digital acts and voices from law, economics, and complexity theory, I sketch the contours of a regulatory system that scales.

You can follow me on X (@⁠⁠ProfSchrepel⁠⁠) and BlueSky (@⁠⁠ProfSchrepel⁠⁠).

References:

Schrepel, T., Adaptive Regulation (2025) https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=5416454
Ranchordás, S., & Van‘t Schip, M. (2020). Future-Proofing Legislation for the Digital Age. In Time, Law, and Change: An Interdisciplinary Study.
Colomo, P. I. (2022). Future-Proof Regulation against the Test of Time: The Evolution of European Telecommunications Regulation. Oxford Journal of Legal Studies, 42(4).
Chander, A. (2017). Future-proofing law. UC Davis Law Review.
Powell, W. W., & Snellman, K. (2004). The Knowledge Economy. Annual Review of Sociology, 30.
Perez, C. (2009). The Double Bubble at the Turn of the Century: Technological Roots and Structural Implications. Cambridge Journal of Economics, 33(4), 779–805.
Allen, D. W., Berg, C., & Potts, J. (2025). Institutional Acceleration: The Consequences of Technological Change in a Digital Economy. Cambridge University Press.
Colander, D., Holt, R. P. F., & Rosser, J. B. (2004). The Changing Face of Mainstream Economics. Review of Political Economy, 16(4).
Arthur, W. B. (2009). The Nature of Technology: What It Is and How It Evolves. New York: Free Press.

Buchanan, J. M., & Tullock, G. (1962). The Calculus of Consent: Logical Foundations of Constitutional Democracy. University of Michigan Press.
Sowell, T. (2007). A Conflict of Visions: Ideological Origins of Political Struggles.
West, G. (2017). Scale: The Universal Laws of Growth, Innovation, Sustainability, and the Pace of Life in Organisms, Cities, Economies, and Companies. Penguin Press.

#23 – Thibault Schrepel: Adaptive Regulation