One of the nation’s leading funders of evidence-based public policy has selected Foster School of Business Associate Professor Uttara Ananthakrishnan for a new research project examining the effects of sports betting advertising.
Ananthakrishnan is collaborating with Brett Hollenbeck and Ken Wilbur of UCLA and Poet Larsen of Harvard Business School. Their research will examine how exposure to sports betting advertising influences app downloads, engagement, and betting participation, using quasi-experimental methods to estimate the causal effects of advertising intensity.
The project is one of 12 research grants announced by Arnold Ventures to advance independent research on the financial, social, and public health impacts of legalized sports betting. Together, the grants represent approximately $2.6 million in funding to help policymakers better understand one of the country’s fastest-growing industries and identify ways to reduce potential harms.
“Over the last decade, online sports betting has been legalized in 30 states and has grown from a niche activity into a society-influencing activity,” said Frank Hodge, Orin & Janet Smith Dean of the Foster School of Business. “This rapid change raises important questions for the gambling industry and policymakers. As access continues to expand, research like Uttara’s is essential to informing responsible innovation, protecting consumers, and guiding public policy. We’re proud to see her work recognized through this highly-competitive process.”
The project builds on Ananthakrishnan’s broader research, which examines how emerging technologies affect people. Her work covers topics such as AI, digital platforms, online gambling, and behavioral addiction. Her findings help technology companies and policymakers better understand the consequences of rapidly evolving technologies.
Earlier this year, Ananthakrishnan published research providing the first causal evidence that TikTok use reduces sleep among heavy users. She has also studied how legalized online sports betting changes consumer spending, finding that it diverts revenue from state lotteries rather than generates new spending.
The Arnold Ventures announcement comes during a milestone year for Ananthakrishnan. She was promoted to associate professor with tenure and named the Evert McCabe Endowed Fellow in Foster’s Information Systems and Operations Management Department. She was also named director of Foster’s Master of Science in Information Systems program, where she prepares future technology leaders to think critically about AI, digital platforms, and their broader societal impacts.