Dear colleagues, We are pleased to announce that registration is now open for DACH-CSS 2026 – the third edition of the DACH Conference on Computational Social Science – titled “Democracy at Risk? Societal Challenges, Data, and Research Infrastructures in the Age of CSS”. The event is organized by the Complexity Science Hub and Central European University. 📅 Date: May 21–22, 2026 📍 Location: Vienna, Austria 🔗 Program and Registration: https://computational-social-science.org/workshops/2026.html#conference-regi... This annual CSS conference brings together researchers from the German-speaking area and beyond. In 2026, we focus on how computational social science can help understand democratic challenges, data access, and research infrastructures in the digital age, covering topics such as: * Using CSS to study (threats to) democracy (e.g., the role of big tech in shaping public opinion; the erosion of and improving the resilience of democratic institutions) * Obstacles to the analytical potential of CSS (e.g., the impact of insufficient data access and methodological limitations on early-career researchers; risks posed by black-box generative AI tools; platform governance and transparency) * Advancing the independence of CSS data access, tools, and infrastructures (e.g., developing tools for accessing new data sources; creating infrastructures independent of big tech; tackling legal ambiguities and researcher risks) The program will include keynotes by Laura K. Nelson and Philipp Lorenz-Spreen, further invited talks, a panel discussion and early career researcher contributions (including an early career researcher award worth 500 EUR), as well as ample networking opportunities. Participation does not require a presenting role unless you want to present in the early career session (deadline February 20, 2026). Notifications of acceptance will be sent in March 2026. Early career researchers may apply for travel grants during the registration process. We look forward to seeing you in Vienna! The Organizing Team (Lisette Espín-Noboa, Mark Wittek, Dorian Tsolak, Ruben Bach, Andreas Blätte, Nikolitsa Grigoropoulou, Valerie Hase, Simon Kühne, and Sebastian Stier) --- Prof. Dr. Simon Kühne Social Data Science Universität Bielefeld, Fakultät für Soziologie Web: https://www.uni-bielefeld.de/fakultaeten/soziologie/fakultaet/personen/kuehn...