Nick Ackert is a Senior Associate and Deputy Director of Research at The Asia Group, where he plays a central role in shaping the firm’s analytic products and business development efforts. In addition to driving TAG’s suite of special reports and editing the Daily Asia newswire, he is a founding member of the Geopolitical Risk Practice, advising clients in finance, venture capital, technology, and other sectors on multi-market business and diplomatic trends across the Indo-Pacific. He also collaborates closely with TAG partners and other senior colleagues on expanding the firm’s thought leadership efforts.
Prior to joining TAG, Nick was the lead research associate with Harvard Business School’s Business, Government, and the International Economy (BGIE) unit. There, he contributed to case development on macroeconomics, crisis response, and international relations for business leaders. His prior experience also includes roles with the China Project (formerly SupChina), the U.S. House of Representatives, and the Association for Foreign Relations in Taiwan.
Nick is an experienced scholar of Chinese foreign policy and Indo-Pacific security, including the US-China-Taiwan triangle, China-ASEAN relations, Chinese political economy, and violent conflict in Southeast Asia and Oceania. He also tracks key policy updates on tariffs and export controls, China’s economy, and Indo-Pacific AI regulation. As an emerging thought leader, Nick’s insights have appeared in Nikkei Asia and Global Studies Quarterly, and he actively engages with Washington’s think tank community on China-related policy discussions.
Nick graduated summa cum laude and phi beta kappa from Harvard University, where he concentrated in Classics. He also holds master’s degrees in international affairs, international history, and political science from Peking University, The London School of Economics, and The Massachusetts Institute of Technology, respectively. He is proficient in Mandarin and has lived, studied, and worked in Taipei, Beijing, and London, bringing global perspective and significant in-region experience to his work.