Vienna, archives, and AI

At the end of November 2025, I traveled to Vienna to participate in the workshop “Administrieren. Techniken, Praktiken und Materialien im 17. und 18. Jahrhundert,” organized by Joseph Löffler, Michaela Hohkamp and Attila Magyar: the University of Vienna, Leibniz University Hannover, and the Center for Regional History in Brixen.

I spoke about a topic that has been central to my work for some time: how historians’ expertise is evolving in the age of artificial intelligence. My paper, “When Human Expertise Meets Advanced Algorithms,” explored what happens when traditional historical skills encounter new digital tools – and why human judgment, curiosity, and context matter more than ever.

Discussing early modern administration, archives, paper technologies, and algorithms in the same room was a perfect reminder of how broad and exciting our field can be. I left Vienna inspired and very grateful for the exchanges, questions, and new connections that will stay with me long after the workshop.