Oxford Internet Institute

The Oxford Internet Institute (OII) is a multidisciplinary research and teaching department of the University of Oxford, founded in 2001 as one of the world's first academic centres devoted to studying the societal implications of the Internet and related digital technologies. It sits within Oxford's Social Sciences Division and examines how digital systems shape identity, economy, governance, and power—from algorithms and generative AI to surveillance, platform governance, and online behaviour. The OII offers graduate-only programmes, including MSc degrees in Social Science of the Internet and Social Data Science, and DPhil programmes in Information, Communication and the Social Sciences and Social Data Science. Its work combines social science theory with empirical and computational methods, and the department is known for policy-relevant, independent research on topics such as trust, misinformation, digital inequality, and the ethics of emerging technologies. Although a department rather than a standalone university, the OII draws on Oxford's global reputation and interdisciplinary environment. It relocated to the Stephen A. Schwarzman Centre for the Humanities at the Radcliffe Observatory quarter, while historically operating from sites on St Giles in central Oxford. The institute also runs an active public events programme, hosts visiting scholars and industry leaders, and maintains strong links with policymakers, civil society, and technology organisations worldwide.