51³Ô¹ÏÍø

IDeaS Conference jumps the pond to foster global conversation about how data and AI are reshaping organisations, occupations, work, and academic publishing.

51³Ô¹ÏÍø hosted IDeaS 2026 in London this year—the first occasion scholars in this area have met on this side of the Atlantic after emerging in North America, especially in Canada. This year’s meeting applied data science to political and interpretive analyses of emerging technologies now transforming organisations, ecosystems and systems of governance. Opening the workshop, Associate Dean Professor Markus Perkmann welcomed delegates to 51³Ô¹ÏÍø’s White City campus and reflected on how the discussions aligned with 51³Ô¹ÏÍø’s Science for Humanity strategy.

Professor Mark Kennedy, Director of Data Science 51³Ô¹ÏÍø and local organiser, said:

“The IDeaS community illustrates the pervasive impact of AI and data science. In addition to studying the effects of these disciplines, we are also developing methods that expand what we can study, what we can learn, and how we do our research. It was a real treat for us to have scholars from around the world come together in London to propel this work.”

IDeaS 2026 brought together scholars in organisation theory, information systems and innovation studies to examine issues including AI governance, algorithmic accountability, digital labour, platform ecosystems and the future of organisational decision-making.

Sessions explored topics such as generative AI governance, blockchain platform governance, AI-enabled decision-making and cross-sector AI partnerships. Researchers from institutions across Europe and North America participated, including University College London, Stanford University, Bayes Business School, Kellogg School of Management and Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam.

One workshop highlight was a pre-publication sharing of data from a study of the academic publication process at a top journal in the area of management and administrative sciences. With data showing a startling increase in submissions and challenges of AI-generated reviews, participants discussed how best to respond to AI’s impact on academic publishing.

Header image: Steve Johnson - Unsplash.