Welcome!
I’m Tomomi Tanaka, an economist, AI strategist, and technical program leader working at the intersection of artificial intelligence, behavioral science, safety, and large-scale decision systems.
My work spans machine learning, AI safety, user behavior analytics, experimentation, and generative AI evaluation across technology platforms, digital products, and public-sector systems.
I currently serve as:
- Founder of Behavioral AI Lab
- Adjunct Professor at Kindai University
- Senior Behavioral Science Advisor at BEworks
At Behavioral AI Lab, I focus on the intersection of AI, behavioral science, and decision systems, exploring how AI systems influence human behavior, trust, safety, and real-world outcomes.
At BEworks, I support behavioral science and AI-related initiatives, including projects focused on digital products, experimentation, and AI adoption.
Previously, I held leadership roles across academia, international organizations, and the technology industry, including:
- Director of Safety by Design at Match Group
- Senior Technical Program Manager at Amazon
- Principal Technical Program Manager at Oracle
- Senior Economist at World Bank
- Assistant Professor at Arizona State University
- Specially Approved Associate Professor at Keio University
My background across economics, behavioral science, AI systems, and product strategy allows me to approach complex problems from both technical and human perspectives.
Areas of Focus
My work focuses on designing and evaluating AI systems that align with how people actually decide, trust, and behave in real-world environments.
Key areas include:
- Machine Learning and Predictive Modeling
- User Behavior Analytics
- AI Safety and Responsible AI
- Generative AI Safety
- Behavioral Economics and Decision Design
- Experimentation and Causal Inference
- Human-AI Interaction
- Trust, Safety, and Risk Evaluation
I am particularly interested in how AI systems influence human behavior, decision quality, trust, and digital safety outcomes.
Research and Industry Experience
My current research explores the intersection of generative AI, behavioral manipulation, fraud detection, and AI evaluation. Recent projects include large-scale analysis of cryptocurrency romance scams and comparative benchmarking of large language models across multilingual behavioral datasets.
At Match Group, I launched and led Safety by Design initiatives across multiple large-scale digital platforms, integrating safety considerations into product development and AI-enabled systems.
At the World Bank, I led econometric and machine learning projects related to poverty measurement, labor markets, geospatial analysis, and private sector development.
At Amazon, I worked on large-scale decision systems and AI-driven optimization projects, including Bayesian adaptive conjoint analysis for employee benefit design.
I have also completed advanced training in Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI), including cloud architecture, AI-ready infrastructure, security, observability, and enterprise AI deployment environments.
Publications and Recognition
My research has been published in leading academic and professional outlets, including:
- Harvard Business Review
- American Economic Review
- The Economic Journal
I have also delivered talks and workshops on AI safety, responsible AI, and behavioral science at international organizations including the United Nations.
Awards and recognitions include:
- Enjoji Jiro Memorial Prize (Nikkei)
- Nikkei Woman of the Year
Current Interests
This portfolio documents my ongoing work in:
- Machine Learning with Python
- User Behavior Analytics
- AI Safety and Generative AI Safety
- Behavioral AI and Decision Systems
- LLM Evaluation and AI-Assisted Analysis
- Real-World Applications of AI and Data Science
Through practical projects, research, and technical implementations, I aim to explore how AI systems can be designed to be more effective, trustworthy, and aligned with human behavior.
Let’s Connect
I’m always interested in discussions and collaborations related to AI, behavioral science, machine learning, digital safety, and decision systems.
Whether you’re exploring new ideas, building AI-driven products, conducting research, or interested in potential collaborations, feel free to reach out.
Speaking
ICPD30 Global Dialogue on Technology (United Nations, New York)
Delivered a talk on AI safety at the ICPD30 Global Dialogue on Technology, a high-level United Nations event bringing together global leaders from governments, industry, and academia to shape the future of technology. The discussion focused on designing AI systems that are safe, equitable, and aligned with human behavior, highlighting the importance of addressing risks such as bias, manipulation, and unequal access while leveraging AI for sustainable development.
Delivered a talk on Safety by Design at the Trust & Safety Summit UK, sharing approaches to embedding safety into product architecture to reduce risk, address abuse, and improve trust at scale.
Delivered a talk on Safety by Design at Generative AI Week, highlighting practical approaches to embedding safety into generative AI systems to support enterprise-scale deployment, manage risk, and drive sustainable business value.
Delivered a talk on Safety by Design at DataFest Tbilisi, highlighting the importance of embedding safety, user behavior, and ethical considerations into the design of AI and data systems to ensure responsible and scalable innovation.
Publication
Journal Articles
Josephine Ofori Adofo, Nori Tarui and Tomomi Tanaka (forthcoming) “The Local Economic Effects of Natural Resources : Evidence from Ghana” Journal of Development Economies [Link]
Tomomichi Amano and Tomomi Tanaka (2025). “Balancing Digital Safety and Innovation.” Harvard Business Review 103, no. 3: 120–127 [Link]
Hai-Anh H. Dang, Dhushyanth Raju, Tomomi Tanaka and Kseniya Abanokova (2024). “Tackling the Last Hurdles of Poverty Entrenchment: An Investigation of Poverty Dynamics for Ghana during 2005/06-2016/17”. Scientific African. Volume 25 [Link]
Ryoko Sato, Jamison Julian, Kevin McGee, Gbemisola Oseni, Julie Perng and Tomomi Tanaka (2022) “The Relationships between Adverse Life Events, Depression, Economic Activities, and Human Capital Investment in Nigeria” Medicine, Conflict and Survival 38, no. 3 (2022): 170-183 [Link]
Hisaki Kono and Tomomi Tanaka (2019) “Does Marriage Work as a Commitment Device?: Experimental Evidence from Vietnam” PLOS ONE 14(6) [Link]
John Hatfield, Charles Plott and Tomomi Tanaka (2016) “Price Controls, Non-Price Quality Competition, and the Nonexistence of Competitive Equilibrium”, Games and Economic Behavior. Volume 99, p. 134-163 [Link]
Tomomi Tanaka and Colin Camerer (2016) “Trait perceptions influence economic out-group bias: lab and field evidence from Vietnam”, Experimental Economics. Volume 19 No. 3, p. 513–534 [Link]
Sera Linardi and Tomomi Tanaka (2013) “Competition as a Savings Incentive: A Field Experiment at a Homeless Shelter”, Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization. Volume 95, p. 240–251 [Link]
John Hatfield, Charles Plott and Tomomi Tanaka (2012) “Understanding Price Controls and Nonprice Competition with Matching Theory”, American Economic Review. Volume 102 No. 3, p. 371-375 [Link]
Tomomi Tanaka and Takeshi Murooka (2012) “Self-Control Problems and Consumption-Saving Decisions: Theory and Empirical Evidence”, Japanese Economic Review. Volume 63 Issue 1, p.23-37 [Link]
Tomomi Tanaka, Colin Camerer and Quang Nguyen (2010) ” Risk and Time Preferences: Linking Experimental and Household Survey Data from Vietnam”, American Economic Review. Volume 100 No. 1, p. 557-571 [Link]
C. Mónica Capra, Tomomi Tanaka, Colin F. Camerer, Lauren Feiler, Veronica Sovero and Charles Noussair (2009) “The Impact of Simple Institutions in Experimental Economies with Poverty Traps”, Economic Journal. Volume 119 Issue 539, p. 977-1009 [Link]
Tomomi Tanaka (2007) “Resource Allocation with Spatial externalities: Experiments on Land Consolidation” B.E. Journals in Economic Analysis & Policy, vol.7 Iss.1 Article 7 [Link]
Working Papers
Hai-Anh H. Dang, Dhushyanth Raju, Tomomi Tanaka and Kseniya Abanokova (2024). Tackling the Last Hurdles of Poverty Entrenchment: An Investigation of Poverty Dynamics for Ghana during 2005/06–2016/17. IZA Discussion Paper, 16738 [Link]
Josephine Ofori Adofo, Nori Tarui and Tomomi Tanaka (2022) “The Local Economic Effects of Natural Resources : Evidence from Ghana” World Bank Policy Research Working Paper 10154 [Link]
Ryan Engstrom, Dan Pavelesku, Tomomi Tanaka and Ayago Wambile (2019) “Mapping Poverty and Slums Using Multiple Methodologies in Accra, Ghana” IEEE [Link]
Julian Jamison, Kevin Mcgee, Gbemisola Oseni, Julie Perng, Ryoko Sato, Tomomi Tanaka, and Renos Vakis. (2018) “The Relationship between Conflicts, Economic Shocks, and Death with Depression, Economic Activities, and Human Capital Investment in Nigeria“. World Bank Policy Research Working Paper No. WPS 8685. Washington, D.C. World Bank Group. [Link]
Hitoshi Matsushima, Tomomi Tanaka and Tomohisa Toyama (2013) “Behavioral Approach to Repeated Games with Private Monitoring” University of Tokyo CARF Working Paper [Link]
Book Chapters
Tomomi Tanaka, Colin Camerer and Quang Nguyen (2015) “Risk and Time Preferences: Linking Experimental and Household Survey Data from Vietnam”, in “Handbook of Experimental Economics Behavioral Economics of Preferences, Choices, and Happiness” (S. Ikeda et al. eds), Springer, New York
Tomomi Tanaka and Colin Camerer (2009) “Status and Ethnicity in Vietnam: Evidence from Experimental Games” in “Social Computing and Behavioral Modeling” (Huan Liu ed), Springer, New York
C. Mónica Capra and Tomomi Tanaka (2008) “Communication and the Extraction of Natural Renewable Resources with Threshold Externalities” in “Experimental Methods in Environmental Economics” (Todd L. Cherry, Stephan Kroll and Jason F. Shogren, Eds), Routledge, New York
World Bank Reports
Ghana Poverty Assessment (2020) [Report]
Human Capital Development in Ghana (2019) [Report]
Ghana – Priorities for Ending Poverty and Boosting Shared Prosperity (SCD) (2018) [Report]
Income Tax Collection and Non-Compliance in Ghana (2018) [Paper]
Monetary and Non-Monetary Poverty in Urban Slums in Accra: Combining Geospatial Data and Machine Learning to Study Urban Poverty (2018) [Paper]
The Impacts of External Funding for District Governments on Tax Collection and Public Goods Provision in Ghana (2017) [Paper]
Pathways to Prosperity in Rural Malawi (2017) [Report]
The Democratic Republic of Congo Poverty Assessment Report (2017) [Report]
The Uganda Poverty Assessment Report (2016) [Report]