Obsidian Academic gives students access to the same regulatory intelligence
feeds we deliver to professionals. Each industry below is actively monitored
with real-time coverage from official government sources.
Chemicals & Materials
This industry covers the production, use, and commercialization of chemical substances and advanced materials subject to strict environmental and health regulations. Continuous updates to REACH and the progressive restriction of PFAS (“forever chemicals”) create significant compliance risk, as changes in regulatory status can instantly impact product viability, supply chains, and inventory valuation across manufacturing, automotive, aerospace, and consumer goods sectors.
ESG & Finance
This vertical monitors the rapidly evolving landscape of corporate sustainability reporting and green finance. With the implementation of CSRD and global ESG standards, companies must track updates to reporting metrics, delegated acts, and green taxonomies to maintain market access, investor trust, and regulatory compliance across all corporate sectors.
Life Sciences
Focused on the highly regulated healthcare sector, this industry tracks critical updates from global health agencies (FDA, EMA, Swissmedic). It covers market authorization, clinical trial regulations, and quality standards for pharmaceuticals and medical devices, where a single regulatory shift can determine product viability and global market access.
Legal Profession Regulation
Monitors the rules governing the practice of law as a regulated profession — bar admission and registers, professional secrecy/legal privilege, deontology and discipline, AML duties for lawyers, e-justice/e-filing mandates, cross-border practice and data protection for firms. Cornerstone regimes include the EU Lawyers' Establishment Directive 98/5/EC, the Lawyers' Services Directive 77/249/EEC, the Professional Qualifications Directive 2005/36/EC, the CCBE Code of Conduct, the Anti-Money Laundering Directives (AMLD) and the GDPR, alongside national bar statutes such as Germany's BRAO, France's loi 71-1130 and Switzerland's BGFA/LLCA. Built for compliance officers, bar associations, general counsel and managing partners of law firms across the EU and Switzerland.
Aviation & Aerospace
Monitors the globally harmonized, safety-critical regulation of civil aviation and aerospace, anchored on ICAO's Chicago Convention and its Annexes (including CORSIA for emissions), EASA's Basic Regulation (EU) 2018/1139 and its implementing/delegated acts for the EU, and the FAA's Title 14 CFR regime for the US. Coverage spans airworthiness and type certification, flight operations and air operator certificates, personnel licensing, aircraft emissions and noise, and unmanned aircraft systems (drones/UAS). Built for airworthiness and regulatory-affairs professionals, airlines, aircraft and parts manufacturers, MROs and drone operators who must track and comply with these tier-0 regimes. Excludes airline commercial/consumer law, ticketing and individual accident-litigation case law.
Maritime Shipping
Monitors the global and regional regulatory regime for international shipping and maritime operations, built on IMO conventions — SOLAS (ship safety), MARPOL (marine pollution prevention), the Ballast Water Management Convention, IMO 2020 (the 0.50% sulphur cap), the IMO GHG Strategy and MLC 2006 (seafarer labour) — implemented through IACS classification society rules and extended in the EU via MRV, the EU ETS extension to shipping, FuelEU Maritime and Port State Control. Covers US Coast Guard and EPA requirements (VGP/VIDA, OPA 90). Built for ship operators, classification societies, maritime compliance and regulatory-affairs teams, and P&I clubs. Scope is regulatory monitoring only — not admiralty disputes, charter-party litigation or vessel-finance case law.
Food Safety & Agri-Food
Monitors the primary-source regimes governing food safety and the agri-food chain, where Codex Alimentarius (FAO/WHO) sets the global reference floor and supranational and national regimes localize it. Covers EU cornerstones — the General Food Law (Reg. (EC) 178/2002), the Hygiene Package and HACCP, additives/contaminants and maximum residue limits, the Novel Foods Regulation (EU) 2015/2283, the Food Information to Consumers Regulation (EU) 1169/2011, and food-contact materials — alongside the US FDA framework under the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) and the FD&C Act. Built for food-safety, quality-assurance and regulatory-affairs professionals at manufacturers, importers and retailers. Excludes agricultural-subsidy/CAP policy, restaurant licensing and grocery commercial law.
Vehicle Type-Approval
Monitors the type-approval-driven, internationally harmonized regulation of road vehicles: UNECE WP.29 (1958 Agreement and UN Regulations, including R155/R156 on cybersecurity and software updates), the EU type-approval framework (Regulation (EU) 2018/858), Euro 6/7 emissions and the General Safety Regulation (EU) 2019/2144, and the US regime of NHTSA FMVSS and EPA/CARB emissions standards. Covers vehicle homologation, emissions and CO2 standards, functional and general safety, cybersecurity, over-the-air software updates and automated driving systems. Built for homologation, certification and vehicle regulatory-affairs teams at OEMs and Tier-1/Tier-2 suppliers. Excludes dealer/consumer sales law, road-traffic offences and motor-insurance regulation.
RF & Electrical Equipment Compliance
Product-conformity regulation for radio, telecom and electrical equipment placed on the market, built on the international standards floor set by the ITU, IEC and 3GPP. The cornerstone regimes are the EU Radio Equipment Directive (2014/53/EU) with its cybersecurity Delegated Regulation (EU) 2022/30, the EMC Directive (2014/30/EU), the Low Voltage Directive (2014/35/EU), the European Electronic Communications Code, and the US FCC Part 15/Part 2 equipment authorization rules. It serves product-compliance and regulatory-affairs professionals in electronics and telecom together with their conformity-assessment partners (notified bodies and TCBs). Scope is global standards plus EU and US market-access requirements; it excludes telecom-operator licensing, spectrum-auction policy and consumer-contract law.
AI, Data & Digital
Monitors the supranationally-led regulation of artificial intelligence, personal data and digital platforms, anchored by the EU AI Act, the GDPR, and the Digital Services Act / Digital Markets Act, with digital operational resilience under DORA. Reinforced by international instruments such as the Council of Europe Framework Convention on AI, the OECD AI Principles and ISO/IEC 42001, plus the emerging US federal-and-key-state layer. Built for AI-governance, data-protection and digital-compliance officers (DPOs, AI compliance leads) who must track and comply with AI risk classification, data-protection and online-platform obligations across the EU, US and globally.
Tobacco & Nicotine
Monitors the primary-source regimes governing tobacco, e-cigarettes/vaping and novel nicotine products, anchored by the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) and its protocols, the EU Tobacco Products Directive (2014/40/EU) and Tobacco Advertising Directive, and the US FDA Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act with the Deeming Rule and PMTA pathway. Covers track-and-trace, ingredient/emissions reporting, plain/standardised packaging, health warnings, flavour bans, excise/tax structures and advertising/promotion restrictions. Built for regulatory affairs, compliance and market-access teams at tobacco, vapour and nicotine-pouch manufacturers, importers and distributors.
Cosmetics
Monitors the primary-source regimes governing cosmetics and personal care products, anchored on the EU Cosmetics Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009 with its Annexes and CPNP notification, the US FDA Modernization of Cosmetics Regulation Act (MoCRA), and the ASEAN Cosmetic Directive. Covers safety assessment, restricted and prohibited substances (CMR, allergens, preservatives, colorants, UV filters), claims and labelling rules, and animal testing bans. Built for regulatory affairs, product safety and compliance professionals at cosmetics manufacturers, importers, responsible persons and safety assessors.
