Nazarbayev University is pleased to invite researchers, faculty, students, and partners to participate in the Young Scholar Conference & Research School “AI & Methods in Computational Communication” (AIM-CC 2026). The event will be held from August 8 to 16 at Nazarbayev University.
AIM-CC 2026 is organized by the School of Sciences and Humanities (SSH) at Nazarbayev University and the Kazakhstan Sociology Lab (KSL), with the support of the International Communication Association (ICA). The event is supported by the Committee of Science of the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Republic of Kazakhstan.
Computational social science is undergoing a profound transformation driven by artificial intelligence. Methods that once relied on limited automation and classical analytical approaches are now being reshaped by large language models, embedding-based techniques, generative agents, and AI-assisted experimental designs. These developments open new analytical possibilities while simultaneously raising important methodological and epistemological questions.
AIM-CC 2026 is designed to address these transformations directly. The Conference & School provides structured methodological training in major areas of Computational Social Science and Computational Communication Research, while systematically integrating AI-related developments into each course.
The program is designed for PhD students, postdoctoral researchers, advanced Master’s students, and early-career scholars working in Computational Communication Research, Computational Social Science, digital sociology, political communication, network science, AI & Society, and related fields. Alongside intensive methodological training, participants will have a chance to present their research in a poster session and receive feedback from instructors and mentors, with the opportunity to further refine and present updated versions of their work.
Please note that the main enrollment for AIM-CC 2026 has closed. We invite you to attend the open lectures as part of the event:
Open Lectures:
• August 8, 10:00-13:00
Instrument and Object: Navigating the AI Revolution in Computational Social Sciences.
Olessia Koltsova, Director of the Laboratory of Social and Cognitive Informatics, Professor in the Department of Sociology, HSE University.
• August 8, 2:00 PM-3:20 PM
Sociology of Humans and Machines: Using Online Experiments in CSS
Taha Yasseri, Director, TCD–TU Dublin Joint Centre for Sociology of Humans and Machines (SOHAM), Full Professor and Chair of Technology and Society, Trinity College Dublin & Technological University Dublin
• August 15, 11:40 AM-1:00 PM
LLM for Computational Social Science Research
Alexey Bessudnov, Associate Professor, Department of Social and Political Sciences, Philosophy and Anthropology, University of Exeter
We look forward to welcoming guests to the AIM-CC 2026 open lectures at Nazarbayev University.
