Lina Khan is a prominent American legal scholar and regulator who has played a major role in U.S. antitrust policy in recent years. She is best known for serving as a commissioner and then the chair of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) from 2021 to 2025, where she led efforts to scrutinize large tech platforms and other concentrated industries. Born on March 3, 1989 in London, Khan moved to the United States as a child and pursued law at Yale and later taught at Columbia Law School, becoming a leading voice on competition law and antitrust reform.
- Early life and education: Khan was born in London to a Pakistani family and moved to the United States at age 11. She earned a BA in political science from Williams College (2010) and a JD from Yale Law School (2017). Her work during law school, including the influential essay "Amazon's Antitrust Paradox," helped establish her reputation in antitrust discussions.
- FTC career: Nominated by President Joe Biden in 2021, she became one of the five commissioners and, later that year, the chair—the youngest in the FTC’s history at that time. Her tenure was marked by a more aggressive stance toward antitrust enforcement and tech industry concentration, drawing both praise and criticism from different stakeholders.
- Post-FTC activity: After leaving the FTC chair position in early 2025, Khan remained influential in political and regulatory circles. Reports in 2025 indicate she joined Zohran Mamdani’s mayoral transition team in New York, signaling continued involvement in public policy and reform advocacy.
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