Complexity Science Hub

Complexity Science Hub We Are Europe's Research Center Translating Data into Solutions for a Better World.

The Complexity Science Hub (CSH) is Europe’s research center for the study of complex systems. We derive meaning from data from a range of disciplines – economics, medicine, ecology, and the social sciences – as a basis for actionable solutions for a better world. Established in 2016, we have grown to over 70 researchers, driven by the increasing demand to gain a genuine understanding of the networks that underlie society, from healthcare to supply chains. Through our complexity science approaches linking physics, mathematics, and computational modeling with data and network science, we develop the capacity to address today's and tomorrow’s challenges. CSH members are AIT Austrian Institute of Technology, BOKU University, Central European University CEU, Graz University of Technology, IT:U Interdisciplinary Transformation University Austria, Medical University of Vienna, TU Wien, University of Continuing Education Krems, Vetmeduni Vienna, Vienna University of Economics and Business, and WKO Austrian Economic Chambers.

What drives us to constantly rethink the world? 🤔 This is one of the core questions of Helga Nowotny’s new book, 𝗭𝘂𝗸𝘂𝗻𝗳𝘁...
04/02/2026

What drives us to constantly rethink the world? 🤔 This is one of the core questions of Helga Nowotny’s new book, 𝗭𝘂𝗸𝘂𝗻𝗳𝘁 𝗯𝗿𝗮𝘂𝗰𝗵𝘁 𝗪𝗲𝗶𝘀𝗵𝗲𝗶𝘁 (𝘍𝘶𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘕𝘦𝘦𝘥𝘴 𝘞𝘪𝘴𝘥𝘰𝘮), which she presented last week at the Complexity Science Hub.

📖 Read the interview: https://csh.ac.at/news/wisdom-is-what-our-future-needs/

Nowotny, also Chair of the CSH Advisory Board, is one of Europe’s most influential researchers in science and technology studies. In her scientific memoir, she shows that research is more than facts – it’s an adventure full of curiosity, courage, and the thrill of the unknown.

The book is a personal reflection on a life spent crossing disciplinary, institutional, and political boundaries, and on what it takes to navigate uncertainty without losing direction. From breaking into a male-dominated academic field to shaping the European Research Council (ERC), she combines scientific insight with personal experience.

Scientists naturally talk a lot about science – with other scientists, perhaps with their families, and sometimes with t...
03/02/2026

Scientists naturally talk a lot about science – with other scientists, perhaps with their families, and sometimes with the media. But the opportunity to share it with school kids (even though incredibly important) doesn’t come around every day.

That’s why we were especially excited to welcome a class from the Vienna European School to CSH for a hands-on workshop on cities. 🏙️ How would they plan a city? 🌎 What happens when a city grows (knowing that by 2050, around 70% of the world’s population will live in urban areas)? 🌟 And how can complexity science support data-driven urban planning?

The students built cities, discussed their ideas, and optimized them afterward. They simulated population growth and corresponding urban development under different political assumptions, presenting their reasoning along the way.

We hope the students learned something from us. But we know for sure that we learned a lot by talking to a very different audience – from their perspectives, creativity, and ways of thinking. It was a real pleasure!

Huge thanks to Andrea Vismara, Guillermo Prieto Viertel, Jiaqi Liang, and Carsten Källner from the Complexity Science Hub for taking the time and effort to bring your science directly into class, and thanks to Rafael Prieto-Curiel, whose support made this possible.

✨ What a special night with our data rockstar! ✨After a string of highlights in recent months – from the Information is ...
30/01/2026

✨ What a special night with our data rockstar! ✨
After a string of highlights in recent months – from the Information is Beautiful Award to being featured in an exhibition at the Wien Museum – Liuhuaying Yang brought her magic to the Vienna Ball of Sciences at the Rathaus this past weekend.

Liu has a rare talent: she transforms data that’s often invisible to many into experiences everyone can grasp. At the ball, she showcased two examples:

1️⃣ 𝗟𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗚𝗹𝗼𝗯𝗮𝗹 𝗧𝗮𝗹𝗲𝗻𝘁 – based on Ljubica Nedelkoska’s research, this visualization explores how open countries are de facto to immigration.

2️⃣ 𝗕𝗹𝗼𝘀𝘀𝗼𝗺𝘀 𝗧𝗵𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵 𝗧𝗶𝗺𝗲 – based on Peter Turchin, Jenny Reddish, and Daniel Kondor’s research, it shows how increased agricultural productivity and advancements in military technology from 10,000 BCE to 1800 CE fueled the growth of societies in scale and complexity.

Usually, Liu lets her visualizations speak for themselves, allowing the data to tell the story. At the ball, however, she appreciated the chance to engage directly with the audience: “I really enjoyed seeing people take their time with the visualizations, ask questions, and stay curious throughout the evening. I was also really happy to do this with the team,” Liu reflects.

We were honored to share the evening with so many interested guests, including Federal Minister for Justice Anna Sporrer, Federal Minister for Women, Science and Research Eva-Maria Holzleitner, Mayor of Vienna Michael Ludwig, and City Councillor Veronica Kaup-Hasler 👏

Stadt Wien, Bundesministerium für Justiz, Bundesministerium für Frauen, Wissenschaft und Forschung

🖼️ L.Schedl/SciBall and private

🤔 Can networks be fair? This simple yet tricky question stood at the center of a workshop hosted by Lisette Espín-Noboa ...
29/01/2026

🤔 Can networks be fair? This simple yet tricky question stood at the center of a workshop hosted by Lisette Espín-Noboa and Fariba Karimi at the Complexity Science Hub last week.

Participants explored how connections shape opportunities, how inequalities emerge, and how fairness can be measured concretely in decision-making across social and organizational contexts. Together, they sketched ideas for research, collaborations, and strategies to make networks work more equitably.

🌟 Thanks to everyone who brought curiosity and insight to the table!

👋 A warm welcome, Léo Delalandre, to the Complexity Science Hub! Léo joins our 𝗦𝗼𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲𝘅𝗶𝘁𝘆 & 𝗖𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗮𝗽𝘀𝗲 research gro...
28/01/2026

👋 A warm welcome, Léo Delalandre, to the Complexity Science Hub!

Léo joins our 𝗦𝗼𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲𝘅𝗶𝘁𝘆 & 𝗖𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗮𝗽𝘀𝗲 research group, where his research focuses on historical developments in gender inequality. To do this, he combines agent-based modeling with comparative analyses of historical and archaeological data.

In the Social Complexity & Collapse group, he will collaborate with Peter Turchin, Jenny Reddish, Daniel Kondor, Harry Fox, Jakob Zsambok, and many more team members at CSH and beyond.

🎉 Welcome to the team, Léo!

Learn more about him here: https://csh.ac.at/leo-delalandre/

🎓 Huge congratulations, Stefan Kitzler — as of today, PhD! 🎓Today, Stefan has successfully defended his dissertation, fo...
27/01/2026

🎓 Huge congratulations, Stefan Kitzler — as of today, PhD! 🎓

Today, Stefan has successfully defended his dissertation, focusing on computational methods for analyzing decentralized finance ecosystems. His research sheds light on this still largely uncharted field, uncovering patterns and mechanisms that deepen our understanding of decentralized finance.

For example, and just recently, he published a paper on cyberattacks in the crypto space, showing that direct losses account for only about a quarter of the total damage, with the larger impact arising from subsequent price declines.

Stefan conducted his research at the Complexity Science Hub and TU Wien, under the supervision of Bernhard Haslhofer.

Warmest congratulations, Dr. Kitzler – a well-earned achievement! We wish you all the best! 👏

👏 CSH just got a major upgrade! Last week, we had the wonderful pleasure of celebrating Ljubica Nedelkoska – now officia...
26/01/2026

👏 CSH just got a major upgrade! Last week, we had the wonderful pleasure of celebrating Ljubica Nedelkoska – now officially, and so thoroughly deserved, a CSH Faculty Member!

As Ljubica herself put it: The places that have shaped you end up being the places you then shape. And we couldn't agree more!

Learn more about Ljubica and her work: https://csh.ac.at/ljubica-nedelkoska/

AI is already writing nearly one-third of new software code – according to a new study published in Science by Simone Da...
23/01/2026

AI is already writing nearly one-third of new software code – according to a new study published in Science by Simone Daniotti, Frank Neffke, Johannes Wachs, and Xiangnan Feng at the Complexity Science Hub Hub.

𝗪𝗵𝘆 𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗿𝗲𝗹𝗲𝘃𝗮𝗻𝘁?
Software has become a central component of nearly all industries and underpins key products such as cars, industrial machinery, and medical devices. Understanding how AI changes software development is therefore economically and technologically critical. In the U.S. alone, firms spend more than $600 billion per year on wages for coding-related work.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗸𝗲𝘆 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘂𝗹𝘁𝘀:
📈 𝗔𝗜-𝗮𝘀𝘀𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗰𝗼𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝘀 𝘀𝗽𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗿𝗮𝗽𝗶𝗱𝗹𝘆: In the United States, the share of AI-generated code increased from 5% in 2022 to nearly 30% by the end of 2024.

🇺🇸 𝗦𝗶𝗴𝗻𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝗿𝗲𝗴𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗴𝗮𝗽𝘀: AI use in coding is highest in the United States (29%), followed by France (24%), Germany (23%), and India (20%). China (12%) and Russia (15%) lag behind as of the end of 2024. However, recent breakthroughs – such as the Chinese model DeepSeek, released after the end of the dataset in 2025 – could narrow this gap quickly.

🏃‍♂️‍➡️ 𝗠𝗲𝗮𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗱𝘂𝗰𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗴𝗮𝗶𝗻𝘀: In aggregate, generative AI increased programmer productivity by an estimated 3.6%.

⚖️ 𝗕𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗳𝗶𝘁𝘀 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗰𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗮𝗺𝗼𝗻𝗴 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲𝗱 𝗱𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗹𝗼𝗽𝗲𝗿𝘀: Less experienced programmers use AI more frequently (37%), but productivity gains accrue almost exclusively to experienced developers. As a result, AI does not necessarily level the playing field but may even widen existing gaps.

💰 𝗦𝘂𝗯𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗼𝗺𝗶𝗰 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗰𝘁: AI-assisted coding generates an added economic value of at least USD 23 billion per year for the U.S. economy.


𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗸𝗲𝘆 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴:
AI is becoming a core part of our digital infrastructure. The key challenge for companies, policymakers, and educators is not whether AI will be used — but how to ensure its benefits are shared broadly.

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁'𝘀 𝗯𝗲𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘀𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘂𝗹𝘁𝘀?
The study is based on an analysis of more than 30 million Python contributions from around 160,000 developers on GitHub. A specially trained model was used to identify AI-supported code.

This research was conducted at the Complexity Science Hub in collaboration with Interdisciplinary Transformation University, Utrecht University, and Corvinus University of Budapest. It was funded by FFG Forschung wirkt.


🔗 Learn more: https://csh.ac.at/news/ai-is-already-writing-almost-one-third-of-new-software-code/
🔗 Read the paper: https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adz9311

𝗖𝗮𝗻 𝗰𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗳𝗹𝗶𝗰𝘁 𝗰𝗹𝗮𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘃𝗲 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝘁𝗼 𝗽𝗿𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗰𝘁 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗳𝗹𝗶𝗰𝘁 𝘀𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗶𝘁𝘆?Niraj Kushwaha and Eddie Lee from the...
21/01/2026

𝗖𝗮𝗻 𝗰𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗳𝗹𝗶𝗰𝘁 𝗰𝗹𝗮𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘃𝗲 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝘁𝗼 𝗽𝗿𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗰𝘁 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗳𝗹𝗶𝗰𝘁 𝘀𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗶𝘁𝘆?

Niraj Kushwaha and Eddie Lee from the Complexity Science Hub, together with their colleagues Woi Sok Oh (University of Waterloo) and Shlok Shah (Princeton University), investigated this question in a recent study.

The study systematically examines patterns in armed conflicts across Africa over the past two decades and explores the limits of predicting conflict intensity, duration, or fatalities.

𝗞𝗲𝘆 𝗶𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀 𝗮𝘁 𝗮 𝗴𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲:

3️⃣ 𝗧𝗵𝗿𝗲𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗳𝗹𝗶𝗰𝘁 𝗮𝗿𝗰𝗵𝗲𝘁𝘆𝗽𝗲𝘀: By combining 20+ years of conflict data with information on climate, geography, infrastructure, economics, and demographics, the researchers classified conflicts in a reproducible, data-driven way – consistently identifying three archetypes.

👥 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗿𝘁 𝗹𝗮𝗯𝗲𝗹𝘀: This approach complements established expert classifications. While expert assessments provide deep contextual and regional knowledge, the data-driven method helps reveal broad patterns across tens of thousands of conflict events worldwide.

🔮 𝗟𝗶𝗺𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗽𝗿𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗰𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗽𝗼𝘄𝗲𝗿: Improved classification does not necessarily allow reliable predictions of conflict intensity, duration, or fatalities; the relationships between conflict type and outcomes are statistically weak.

⁉️ 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁’𝘀 𝗻𝗲𝘅𝘁? If commonly used indicators and datasets cannot reliably predict conflict severity, it raises a crucial question: which key factors are missing from global datasets, and what new approaches could improve future models? Answering this could enable more targeted humanitarian planning and more efficient resource allocation.

🔗 Learn more: https://csh.ac.at/news/data-driven-analysis-reveals-three-archetypes-of-armed-conflicts/

___

This new study was published in Royal Society Open Science and was made possible with funding from the Austrian Science Fund FWF.

🖼️ Pawel Janiak, Unsplash

👋 Please join us in welcoming 𝗣𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗶𝗽𝗽 𝗛𝗶𝗹𝗺𝗯𝗮𝘂𝗲𝗿 to the Complexity Science Hub!Philipp joins our 𝗧𝗿𝗮𝗻𝘀𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗘𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗼𝗺𝗶𝗲𝘀 r...
20/01/2026

👋 Please join us in welcoming 𝗣𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗶𝗽𝗽 𝗛𝗶𝗹𝗺𝗯𝗮𝘂𝗲𝗿 to the Complexity Science Hub!

Philipp joins our 𝗧𝗿𝗮𝗻𝘀𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗘𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗼𝗺𝗶𝗲𝘀 research group, where he explores how cities influence professional networks, workplace segregation, and labor market outcomes. His work focuses on labor market segregation along ethnic and gender lines, and how team composition and professional networks shape career paths and wages.

Drawing on large-scale administrative data from Austria, Philipp studies patterns of workplace segregation across organizations, the formation of coworker networks, and how these dynamics vary across cities of different sizes.
In the Transforming Economies group, he will collaborate with Frank Neffke, Ljubica Nedelkoska, and other team members on these topics.

🎉 Welcome to the team, Philipp!

Learn more about him here: https://csh.ac.at/philipp-hilmbauer-hofmarcher/

💸 𝗔𝗿𝗲 𝗰𝗿𝘆𝗽𝘁𝗼 𝗵𝗮𝗰𝗸𝘀 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗼𝗻𝗲𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗴𝗲𝘁𝘀 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗹𝗲𝗻? Cryptocurrency investment has surged enormously in popularit...
14/01/2026

💸 𝗔𝗿𝗲 𝗰𝗿𝘆𝗽𝘁𝗼 𝗵𝗮𝗰𝗸𝘀 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗼𝗻𝗲𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗴𝗲𝘁𝘀 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗹𝗲𝗻? Cryptocurrency investment has surged enormously in popularity. For example, CoinLedger estimates that more than 560 million people worldwide now hold digital assets. This rapid growth, however, has been accompanied by a rise in hacking incidents and substantial financial losses.

Reports on crypto cyberattacks often focus on the funds that disappear immediately. But new research shows that this is only part of the story. An analysis by Complexity Science Hub researchers Stefan Kitzler and Bernhard Haslhofer, together with Masarah Paquet-Clouston, examined 22 major cyberattacks in the crypto sector between 2020 and 2022.

In 12 of these cases, the affected tokens experienced significant price crashes. While the direct losses in these cases amounted to around USD 454 million, the indirect losses due to declining token values reached USD 1.3 billion.

𝗠𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗶𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀:
📉 After an attack, affected tokens lost 14% of their value on average
📊 Trading volume increased in around 68% of the cases
🔍 Market reactions in DeFi resemble those in traditional finance, but are more pronounced

🔗 𝗗𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗱𝗲𝗲𝗽𝗲𝗿:
https://csh.ac.at/news/crypto-hacks-price-drops-often-outweigh-direct-losses/

14/01/2026

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