From August 8 to 16, Nazarbayev University hosted the international research and educational school AI and Methods in Computational Communication (AIM-CC 2026). The event brought together researchers from different countries to discuss the use of artificial intelligence in the study of communication, media, and social processes, as well as the latest methods of computational analysis.
The event was organized by the Kazakhstan Sociology Lab in collaboration with the NU School of Sciences and Humanities, with the support of the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Republic of Kazakhstan and the International Communication Association (ICA, USA).
The program focused on the use of large language models (LLMs) in academic research, generative AI for media content and public opinion analysis, human–AI interaction, the study and detection of disinformation, as well as methodological and ethical aspects of using artificial intelligence in research.
Among the invited speakers were Professor Taha Yasseri of Trinity College Dublin (Ireland), Professor Alexey Bessudnov of the University of Exeter (UK), and Professor Miriam Schirmer of the University of Konstanz (Germany), along with other leading researchers in the social and computational sciences.
A distinctive feature of AIM-CC 2026 was its educational format, designed primarily for early-career researchers, including PhD students, postdoctoral researchers, and academics already working in the field.
“Social sciences and computer science usually hold their events separately, with relatively little interaction between the two fields. At the same time, major scientific breakthroughs today may increasingly emerge at the intersection of disciplines that have traditionally developed independently. Traditional research approaches remain strong in the social sciences. However, in the near future, we can expect growing demand for AI agents in social research. Moreover, the emergence of AI has created new challenges related to human–AI interaction, giving rise to a new area of research where traditional social science methods can be applied,” said Andrey Tkachenko, Assistant Professor at the NU Graduate School of Business and one of the event’s organizers.
