The New Era of Lawyerless Contracting
22 July 2026
Contract generators, platforms, and AI are reshaping consumer contracts. Luka Nenadic explains how and highlights the potential pitfalls and policy implications.
Latest news
How social media interoperability could restore user choice
15 July 2026
Social networking interoperability is a leading policy proposal that gives users a real choice of platform providers. New evidence shows it only works if regulators get the specifics right, argues Philipp Riederle, doctoral researcher, OII.
UK adults increasingly seek emotional support and companionship from AI, new report finds
9 July 2026
New analysis from researchers at the Oxford Internet Institute reveals that users of artificial intelligence tools are increasingly turning to them for personal support, emotional advice, and companionship.
Four graduate degrees
Academic spotlight
Find out more about research by OII academics
Dr Janaki Srinivasan
Associate Professor Digital South Asian Studies
Janaki's research examines the politics of digital exclusion in India. She uses ethnographic and archival research to examine how gender, caste and class have shaped the use of information and information technologies in varied contexts.
Professor Brent Mittelstadt
Professor of Data Ethics and Policy
Professor Brent Mittelstadt is a data ethicist and philosopher specializing in AI ethics, professional ethics, and technology law and policy. He is the founder/coordinator of the Governance of Emerging Technologies (GET) programme.
Dr Bernie Hogan
Director of Graduate Studies, Associate Professor, Senior Research Fellow
Bernie Hogan examines how to capture, represent and think about social networks, especially personal social networks. His work focuses on the role of design in social media, network capture techniques and theories of relationships.
Latest projects
Stewardship of Privacy-Enhancing Technologies
The Synthetic Society Lab aims to improve how we research, access, and use sensitive human data. The fellowship will advance an evidence-based science of privacy engineering to make research using digital traces safe and reliable.
Worker Voice and AI Adoption
This project investigates how worker representation in German firms shapes AI use and adoption, asking whether employee voice at firms can steer AI toward complementing workers rather than automating them.
The Digital Lives of Care-experienced Children
This project investigates how digital skills develop in the absence of traditional family support structures and aims to identify any critical and overlooked gaps that emerge.
Latest report
By Femke de Rijk and Robert Prey
A new report from the Oxford Internet Institute and the University of Groningen identifies the 'streaming paradox' with evidence from five countries - Brazil, Chile, the Netherlands, Nigeria and South Korea.
Press coverage
Study: 38% open up to AI about relationships
The Deep View, 08 July 2026
Emotional support and advice have long been difficult to come by, prompting a growing number of people to turn to AI for more help, finds new research led by the OII's Dr Florence Enock.
How much is AI hacking your emotions?
FT, 09 July 2026
Disinformation and deepfakes are known risks but biased LLMs could also be used to influence public opinion with commentary from Prof. Sandra Wachter.
The public deserves socially beneficial technology in return for its AI investment
Computer Weekly, 08 July 2026
The public is in all but name a shareholder of AI companies - it is time that the public receives socially beneficial technology in return for its investment argues Prof. Sandra Wachter.
