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Nachrichten, Termine, Experten
Nachrichten, Termine, Experten
On 23–24 Sep 2025, Berlin hosts the AI-based Methods for the Humanities workshop, co-organized by BIFOLD (Berlin Institute for the Foundations of Learning and Data) and the Max Planck Institute for the History of Science. Ahead of the event, Prof. Matteo Valleriani and Dr. Oliver Eberle outline key challenges in an interview, ranging from how AI can aid research in history, culture, and language to where current methods fall short. The workshop will address temporality, low-resource data, historical networks, explainable AI, and foundation models. Alongside the workshop, two public events are scheduled: the talk Effizient aber korrupt? on 22 Sep and the BIFOLD Colloquium 10/2025 on 25 Sep.
From September 23 to 24, 2025, the workshop "AI-based Methods for the Humanities" (https://www.bifold.berlin/news-events/events/ai-based-methods-for-the-humanities) will bring together leading researchers from artificial intelligence and the humanities in Berlin. Organized by Prof. Dr. Matteo Valleriani (Max Planck Institute for the History of Science, BIFOLD Fellow) and Dr. Oliver Eberle (Berlin Institute for the Foundations of Learning and Data), the event explores how AI-based methods can advance research into history, culture, and language , while simultaneously posing new challenges for AI research.
The workshop emphasizes time and temporality, concepts central to the humanities that challenge current approaches in machine learning.. An overview of all speakers and topics is available on the AI-based Methods for the Humanities website. Below, Matteo Valleriani and Oliver Eberle explain why they brought this workshop to life.
To open the conversation beyond academia, the workshop is framed by two events open to academia and the public. (Information below the interview)
Interview: Rethinking AI for the Humanities
What major debate currently defines AI in the humanities, and what approach will the workshop take?
Matteo Valleriani: Current debates often portray AI as a threat to the humanities, raising fears about authorship, interpretation, and research practices. Our workshop takes a different path: We focus squarely on the technical details and epistemic implications of specific AI-based methods. Our aim is to critically explore what AI actually does—and can do—when applied to humanities questions.
A distinctive feature is our emphasis on “time” and “temporality,” core topics in the humanities but difficult for AI to handle. By bringing together top-level AI experts and humanities scholars, we aim to explore not only how AI can support humanistic inquiry, but also how humanistic concepts can expand the horizons of AI research.
Oliver Eberle: From the AI perspective, the humanities pose challenges that today’s models cannot yet solve: limited and fragmented data, strong dependence on context, and the need for nuanced interpretation. While foundation models can help to organize large bodies of material, the features that define humanistic inquiry, such as heterogeneity, reliance on contextual understanding, and complex reasoning, often exceed what today’s learning-based systems can handle. These difficulties are amplified by the “low-resource” nature of many humanities sources, which provide limited data and often lack the clear task labels that AI systems require. Addressing these limitations means asking how to evaluate outputs with historical, cultural, and ethical nuance, and how to build models and interpretability methods that engage the full depth of humanities research.
What do you expect from your two-day workshop on “AI-based methods for the humanities” in Berlin?
Matteo Valleriani: The workshop is designed as a platform for deep interdisciplinary engagement between AI researchers and scholars in the computational humanities. Structured into four thematic sessions—Explainable AI, Historical Networks, Low-Resource Data, and Foundation Models—it brings together leading voices in both communities to share insights, discuss challenges, and push methodological boundaries. With approximately 30 additional experts in attendance beyond the speakers, we anticipate that the event will create fertile ground for synergies among existing projects, seed ideas for new collaborations, and accelerate the exchange of tools, methods, and research questions. Beyond the keynotes and panels, the real value lies in conversations, poster sessions, and informal encounters that can spark fresh collaborations.
This workshop would not be possible without the joint support of BIFOLD and the Max Planck Institute for the History of Science. Both institutions have fostered collaboration between AI research and the humanities. This workshop stems directly from that vision and serves as a model for how foundational AI research can remain connected to the broader intellectual and societal questions that drive the humanities.
What are your wishes for the community working on AI-based methods for the humanities?
Matteo Valleriani: AI opens new possibilities for the humanities, enabling researchers to analyze materials at a scale, depth, and complexity that were previously impossible. Realizing this potential within digital humanities requires ongoing collaboration with libraries, archives, and museums.
My central wish is for the emergence of an institutional framework that enables long-term integration and provides the solid data infrastructure it requires. Such a hub could bridge the gap between AI and the humanities, foster genuine partnerships, and serve as a laboratory where technical expertise and humanistic knowledge converge.
Oliver Eberle: It is exciting to see the community’s continued momentum in AI, and I hope this workshop contributes to strengthening its reach and impact. As machine learning research is already engaged in fundamental questions about what makes a scientific explanation falsifiable, how knowledge should be understood in the age of AI, and which sociotechnical considerations should guide research practices, I believe the humanities should actively participate in shaping the future of AI. With their insights and expertise, the humanities can help us navigate questions of ethics, societal impact, and fairness, while also challenging the very foundations of intelligent systems. This drives us to tackle novel questions beyond standard AI settings, which often prioritize scale over deeper understanding, and inspire the next generation of students and researchers to partake in shaping this vibrant, interdisciplinary field.
[end interview]
One workshop for academia and two events open to the public
To open the conversation beyond academia, the workshop is framed by two events open to academia and the public.
1) EFFIZIENT ABER KORRUPT? Verwaltung im 17. und 21. Jahrhundert, untersucht mit KI
Sep 22, 2025, ECDF, 4:45pm
https://www.bifold.berlin/news-events/events/view/event-details/effizient-aber-k...
Dr. Christoph Sander (Deutsche Historische Institut in Rom) and Prof. Jan Mendling (Humboldt University in Berlin) will discuss on September 22, 2025 by presenting his research on “EFFIZIENT ABER KORRUPT? Verwaltung im 17. und 21. Jahrhundert, untersucht mit KI” . Please note the format is in German.
2) BIFOLD Colloquium 10/2025 - Machine Learning for Complex Networks: From GNNs to Causal Graph Learning
Sep 25, TU Berlin, 4pm
https://www.bifold.berlin/news-events/events/view/event-details/bifold-colloquiu...
Prof. Dr. Ingo Scholtes will present a new AI method that can better detect patterns over time in complex networks, from social interactions to biological systems.
Prof. Dr. Matteo Valleriani
Max-Planck-Institut für Wissenschaftsgeschichte
VALLERIANI@MPIWG-BERLIN.MPG.DE
T +49 30 22667-349
https://www.bifold.berlin/news-events/news/view/news-detail/rethinking-ai-for-th...
Rethinking AI for the Humanities - Interview with Prof. Matteo Valleriani and Dr. Oliver Eberle
Copyright: BIFOLD
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Rethinking AI for the Humanities - Interview with Prof. Matteo Valleriani and Dr. Oliver Eberle
Copyright: BIFOLD
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