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Building Digital Platform Observatories Symposium

Photo by John on Unsplash The Centre for Digital Cultures and Societies (DCS) will host a one-day symposium, Building Digital Platform Observatories, on 16 June 2026 at the UQ Brisbane City Campus in partnership with the Australian Internet Observatory. Bringing together leading researchers from across Australia and internationally, the workshop will explore how digital observatories […]

ARDC co-design process invites feedback on AIO mid project

Hands and a laptop

The Australian Internet Observatory has commenced its mid-point co-design process, seeking structured input from the broader research and stakeholder community to inform the next phase of its development. This consultation represents a critical opportunity for researchers, analysts and research support professionals to contribute to the refinement of AIO’s data donation tools and methodological frameworks. Feedback […]

How to do digital platform research using AIO?

This webinar provides a practical overview of how to conduct digital platform research using AIO’s data donation tools and infrastructure. It outlines core methodological considerations, including ethical data collection, consent and cross-disciplinary applicability. Researchers can use this resource to inform study design, data workflows and effective use of AIO capabilities.

Video now available – Doing Digital Platform Research with AIO

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EEzlKi5nT8k The Australian Internet Observatory has conducted a public webinar on doing Digital Platform research using our infrastructure, presenting current progress and emerging directions in its development of national research infrastructure for digital platform data. The webinar provides a detailed overview of AIO’s evolving data donation tools and research capabilities, designed to support rigorous, ethical […]

Research projects using AIO 2026

A number of research projects are currently using AIO for data collection and analysis. Topics include advertising, elections, gambling, recommender systems and more.  The Australian Ad Observatory The Australian Ad Observatory, a project of the ARC Centre of Excellence for Automated Decision-Making and Society (ADM+S), uses the Mobile RoverAIO’s Mobile Observatory Ad Toolkit screen-tracking tool […]

Data Download Packages Explainer

A Data Download Package (DDP) is a personal data archive that a user can request and download from a digital platform. It contains a structured collection of the personal data that the platform holds about that user. DDPs include activity histories, content created or consumed, interaction records, settings, advertising data, and various forms of metadata. […]

Screen Capture Explainer

Screen capture is a data donation method that enable researchers to observe what happens on a participant’s screen and learn more about individual experiences on digital platforms and applications. Whether you are researching the content of news feeds or how people interact with different types of visual information, screen capture offers an opportunity to investigate […]

FAQ

FAQs What is the Australian Internet Observatory? The Australian Internet Observatory (AIO) is a national research infrastructure project designed to support the collection and analysis of digital social data across various disciplines. It’s a four-year initiative, established as a co-investment partnership with the Australian Research Data Commons (ARDC). The AIO functions as a shared facility […]

Share your data for research

By sharing your data and participating in our research, you can help Australian researchers study these platforms and the way our everyday interactions with them impact on our lives. Your contribution helps us better understand how algorithms work, which kinds of advertisements target Australians, and how social media affects our society. Digital platforms shape how […]

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