Artificial Intelligence Raises New Questions for the Social Sciences: the Launch of AISS
Thousands of employment contracts, whole archives of court rulings, and texts that capture the reasoning behind an economic argument: these are valuable resources for research, but often too vast to be examined manually. Artificial intelligence now makes it possible to study them in ways that were previously impractical. To help researchers seize these opportunities, Bocconi has set up a new research lab, Artificial Intelligence in Social Sciences (AISS).
Under the scientific direction of Massimo Anelli of the Department of Social and Political Sciences, AISS has been operational with its team since October 1, 2026, and is part of the University’s 2026–2030 Strategic Plan. It has an interdepartmental focus: Bocconi researchers from any discipline can collaborate with the lab.
“Artificial intelligence doesn’t just allow us to cut the time needed for the research we were already doing,” explains Anelli. “It allows us to ask new questions. The key is knowing how to use these tools rigorously: verifying the measurements produced by machines by comparing them with human judgment, ensuring the results are replicable, and protecting personal or licensed data.” AISS is developing these capabilities in collaboration with the Department of Computing Sciences.
The lab offers an AI Clinic where any Bocconi researcher can bring a project to determine whether and how to apply artificial intelligence methods. A project incubator, in collaboration with the Steering Committee, supports advanced research whose methods may also be useful in other fields. Among the projects launched are the digitization of approximately 3,400 Italian collective bargaining agreements and a study with the Department of Legal Studies on the use of AI-simulated judges in the analysis of appellate cases.
AISS also focuses on the sharing of expertise. AISS Bytes are short internal seminars, open to all faculty members, that start with a research question to demonstrate the method used. The lab will also train research assistants and social science students so they can use these tools from the very beginning of a project.
