Fraunhofer Institute for Systems and Innovation Research ISI
Fraunhofer Institute for Systems and Innovation Research ISI

Dr. Nicholas Martin

Nicholas Martin joined Fraunhofer ISI in 2017 as a senior researcher and project manager. His research focuses on industrial and innovation policy, the data economy, and technology and digital regulation. In his projects, he has worked on American and Chinese industrial policy, the effects of the GDPR on innovation and the economy, and on the development and adoption (or otherwise!) of a wide range of digital technologies, from data spaces/data trusts to self-sovereign identities, privacy enhancing technologies and digital platforms in the energy sector. Further research interests are the politics and economies of China and the US, climate and environmental policy, and rewilding.

Prior to coming to Fraunhofer ISI, Nicholas Martin worked as a management consultant at OC&C Strategy Consultants and at the MIT Industrial Performance Center. He holds a PhD in Political Science from MIT, and degrees in History and Modern Chinese Studies from Cambridge and Oxford.

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    • Industrial and innovation policy
    • the data economy
    • Technology/Digital regulation

    • Chinese politics and China’s economy
    • US politics and the US economy
    • Climate policy
    • Environmental policy and rewilding

    • Martin, N., v. Grafenstein, M. (2025): The GDPR and Innovation: Much Ado about Quite a Lot, under review with Computer Law & Security Review
    • Widdel, L., Martin, N. (2025): Public demand and technology phase-out: The case of small hydropower in Finland and Germany, under review with Environmental Innovation and Societal Transitions
    • Kreutzer, S., Heimer, T. et. al. (2025): Datentreuhänder als Schlüssel zum Datenteilen, Aachen: E.ON Energieforschungszentrum, RWTH Aachen University, https://doi.org/10.24406/publica-5539
    • Berkhout, V., Klobasa, M., Martin, N., et al. (2025): Implikationen der europäischen Datenstrategie und -regulierung für die Energiewirtschaft – Whitepaper, Kassel und Karlsruhe: Fraunhofer. https://doi.org/10.24406/publica-3988
    • Martin, N., Metzger, F. (2025): What Determines the Acceptance of Digital Identity and Facial Recognition-Based Technologies? Evidence From an eID System and a Multi-Country Survey. In: Journal of Innovation Management, Vol. 13 (2), 129–173
    • Martin, N., Metzger, F. (2024): The chimera of control: Self-sovereign identity, data control, and user perceptions. In: Human Technology 20(2), 183–223. https://doi.org/10.14254/1795-6889.2024.20-2.1
    • Martin, N., Blind, K., et al. (2023): Assessment of the Potential Economic Benefits of the IMPULSE eID System, Deliverable 4.4 of the IMPULSE Project, https://impulse-h2020.eu
    • Martin, N., Ebbers, F. (2022): When Regulatory Power and Industrial Policy Ambitions Collide: The Brussels Effect, Lead-Market Formation, and the GDPR. In: Schiffner, S. et al. (eds) Privacy Symposium 2022. DPLICIT 2022. Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-09901-4_8
    • Gotsch, M., Martin, N., et al. (2022): Digitalisierung als Transformationsmotor für eine Green Economy: Der Beitrag von Big Data, KI und digitalen Plattformen. UBA Texte | 85/2022.
    • European Commission et al. (2022): Study on the costs and benefits of innovation-sensitive legislation, https://doi.org/10.2777/9156
    • Hallinan, D., Martin, N. (2020): Fundamental rights, the normative keystone of DPIA. In: European data protection law review : Edpl 6 (2020), No.2, p.178-193.
    • Martin, N., (2020): Corona-Eindämmung in Taiwan: Nur digitale Tools? In: DuD: Datenschutz und Datensicherheit 44 (2020), No.12, p.815-818.
    • Martin, N., Friedewald, M., et al. (2020): The Data Protection Impact Assessment According to Article 35 GDPR. A Practitioner’s Manual. Stuttgart: Fraunhofer Verlag.
    • Martin, N., Matt, C., et al. (2019): How data protection regulation affects startup innovation. In: Information Systems Frontiers 21 (2019), No.6, p.1307-1324.
    • Martin, N. und Matt, C. (2018): Unblackboxing the Effects of Privacy Regulation on Firm Innovation. Proceedings of the 39th International Conference on Information Systems, San Francisco.
    • Martin, N. (2016): Media coverage, industrial policy, and safety : explaining shifting state and Private ownership in China's coal-mining industry. PhD thesis, MIT. https://dspace.mit.edu/handle/1721.1/107536