Hosted by Centre for Software & IT Management, session to feature faculty from leading global B-schools

6 March, 2025, Bengaluru: The Centre for Software and Information Technology Management (CSITM) will host a panel discussion titled, ‘Using AI and ML to Address Challenges in Digital Platforms: Insights from India and Worldwide’, on 13th March 2025, from 6 pm.

This will be a Zoom webinar. To register, those interested need to click this link. Those who register, will be sent a Zoom link for the webinar.

The session will feature Dr. Sharmistha Sikdar, Faculty of Business Administration, Tuck School of Business, Dartmouth College; Dr. Yi Liu, Faculty of Marketing, Wisconsin School of Business, University of Wisconsin-Madison; Dr. Dante Donati, Faculty of Marketing, Columbia Business School, Columbia University, and Dr. Klaus Miller, Faculty of Marketing, HEC Paris and Chairholder at the Hi!PARIS Center on Data Analytics and Artificial Intelligence for Science, Business and Society.

CSTIM will conduct the seminar as part of its initiative to promote dissemination and application of knowledge for the benefit of academics and professionals from all walks of industry. The panel discussion will be followed by a Q&A session.

All queries need to be addressed to: csitm@iimb.ac.in

Abstract

The integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) in digital platforms has emerged as a pivotal solution to a range of challenges across industries, particularly in public health campaigns, e-commerce and digital advertising. Recent studies highlight the potential of AI and ML in enhancing targeting precision, personalizing experiences, pricing and optimizing the effectiveness of advertisements. These technological advancements are also being utilized to enhance the efficiency of social media campaigns aimed at improving public health outcomes. As digital platforms continue to evolve, the role of AI in refining user experience and evaluating campaign success becomes increasingly important, emphasizing the need for ongoing research in this domain.

Researchers across the globe are delving deeper into the influence of AI and ML on digital platforms. A recent study on social media influencer marketing demonstrated that AI can significantly improve the alignment between influencers and brands. However, it also raises concerns about increased competition among influencers, especially those targeting niche audiences, potentially reducing overall platform revenue. These findings contribute to a broader understanding of how AI can refine social media strategies, while highlighting the complexities of balancing technological advantages with market dynamics.

The discussion in the webinar will explore the impact of social media campaigns on pricing strategies, public health and polarizing content in digital media monetization. The webinar will also explore how digital platforms, particularly Facebook and Instagram, enable micro-targeting, though challenges persist in reaching certain populations, particularly in rural areas. A key focus will be on the innovative tools required to measure the effectiveness of such campaigns, including chat surveys and longitudinal data collection to assess shifts in attitude and behavior. The session will also explore how AI-driven optimization tools can enhance targeting strategies, ensuring that high-risk populations are effectively reached with vital health information, and how data analytics and privacy-conscious experimental design could serve as a model for similar public health initiatives in other contexts.

Speaker Profiles

Dr. Sharmistha Sikdar’s research interest lies in the development and application of statistical models and machine learning methods to examine empirical problems in marketing. Some of the applications of her research methods include examining competitive price dynamics on e-commerce platforms like Amazon and Walmart, predictive models of pricing and customer behavior. She has a PhD in Marketing from Cornell University. She also has a Master’s degree in Quantitative Economics from Indian Statistical Institute, Calcutta and a Bachelor’s degree in Economics with Honors from Calcutta University. Prior to joining the academia, she spent more than eight years in the analytics/data science industry specializing in banking and customer analytics. She has worked for the analytics centres for companies such as General Electric, Citibank and Infosys. She is also a co-inventor of a patented customer analytics solution for enterprises.

Dr. Yi Liu is an Assistant Professor of Marketing at the Wisconsin School of Business, UW-Madison. His major research interests lie in building theoretical models about technology (for example, Artificial Intelligence) and online platforms to study their impact on customers and firms. His recent research has been published in top journals including Marketing Science and Management Science. His work about content moderation on social media platforms is covered by media such as Knowledge at Wharton and is cited by several practitioners. He has also developed and taught a new course, Technology Product Marketing, for undergraduate and MBA students at UW-Madison. He received his PhD in Marketing from the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania.

Dr. Dante Donati is an Assistant Professor of Business at Columbia Business School, specializing in the application of theoretical and empirical models to analyze firm and consumer behavior on online platforms. His research advances the understanding of digital marketing's impact on brand sentiment, behavioral change and social outcomes, offering evidence-based insights to inform policy and business strategies. He is also the Co-founder of Virtual Lab, an open-source platform that develops tools for online survey recruitment and evaluates the behavioral effects of ad campaigns, apps and websites. He holds a PhD in Economics from Pompeu Fabra University and a Master’s degree in Economics from Bocconi University. He is a Research Fellow at CESifo and has collaborated with the World Bank on policy-oriented research.

Dr. Klaus M. Miller is an Assistant Professor in the Marketing Department at HEC Paris and a Chairholder at the Hi! PARIS Center on Data Analytics and Artificial Intelligence for Science, Business and Society. His research interests meet at the interface between empirical quantitative marketing, management economics and information systems – specifically, his research concerns advertising and privacy issues in the digital economy. During his PhD, as a post-doctoral scholar and afterward, he has been a frequent visiting scholar at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and the Graduate School of Business at Stanford University. His research is currently under review or has been published in top-tier academic journals such as the American Economic Review, Management Science, the Journal of Marketing Research and the International Journal of Research in Marketing, as well as management-oriented journals.