Lea Schneidemesser

Lea Schneidemesser is a doctoral researcher at the University of Erfurt and the Weizenbaum Institute for the Networked Society in Berlin, affiliated with the Department of Economics, Law, and Social Sciences. She holds a Master's degree in Sociology from Friedrich-Schiller-University Jena and has conducted research stays in China at Wuhan University, Zhejiang University, and Guangzhou. Her work focuses on the intersection of economic sociology, labor studies, and political economy with a regional emphasis on Germany and China.

She investigates the strategic role of data and digital technologies in Chinese direct investments in Europe, particularly within manufacturing value chains. Key affiliations include the 'Work with Artificial Intelligence' research group at Weizenbaum Institute and the DFG Collaborative Research Center 294 on property structural changes. Her research explores how digital platforms and AI reshape industrial production and labor relations, with case studies on Chinese-German corporate ownership conflicts in the metal and electronics sectors.

Lea has contributed to policy briefs on digital transformation in manufacturing and published in journals like Global Networks and International Labour Review. Her work addresses geoeconomic dimensions of data ownership, industrial internet strategies, and the socio-economic implications of China's technological expansion in Europe.