The future of research and data analytics is here
Our rapidly growing team specialises in developing AI-powered tools for research, data analytics, and process optimisation. We collaborate with academia, industry, and government to create customised AI solutions that streamline data analysis and accelerate research efforts. By generating both quantitative and qualitative insights, our services enable faster reporting, inform business decisions, and facilitate timely policy reforms, ultimately driving real-world impact.
Our services
Custom AI Solutions
We design and deploy AI tools tailored to the needs of researchers, businesses, and policy organisations.
Data Creation & Analysis
From data construction and cleaning to advanced quantitative modelling, we build reliable data pipelines that drive evidence-based insights.
Secure Infrastructure
We develop and maintain safe, high-performance environments for AI tool deployment, ensuring robust governance of sensitive data.
Model Benchmarking and Evaluation
We assess AI models against rigorous benchmarks to maximise reliability, transparency, and utility.
Consultancy and Advisory
We advise partners on model architecture, security frameworks, and hardware optimisation to accelerate AI adoption.
Current projects
HILDA Bot
An AI assistant designed to support users of the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) Survey. Drawing on a rich customised knowledge base, the bot produces expert advice to its users, assisting them in data navigation, methodological choices, and literature scoping. Performance of the bot is rigorously benchmarked, ensuring that the interactions reduce time-to-insight while maintaining optimal accuracy.
BDB Assistant
The Breaking Down Barriers (BDB) Assistant is a comprehensive analytical platform for non-profit organisations operating in Australia. The assistant can be used to generate quantitative insights into the welfare of Australian communities (at SA2/SA4 level), thus enabling non-profit organisations to track their performance on key indicators of social and economic disadvantage, identify emergent social issues and focal areas in need of help.
The Australian Accounting Data Initiative
In collaboration with the Department of Accounting, we are developing automated tools for large-scale data collection from financial reports and online sources. These tools combine web scraping, optical character recognition (OCR), and LLM-based text processing to create firm-level indicators of economic performance and business sentiments. The initiative combines advanced quantitative and qualitative methods, opening new avenues for empirical research in accounting, economics and finance.
Our partners
- Australian Bureau of Statistics
- Australian Government Department of Social Services
- Hong Kong University of Science and Technology
- InfoXchange
- Paul Ramsay Foundation
- The Australian Institute for Health and Welfare
- The University of Bristol
- The University of Indonesia
Our team
The Melbourne Institute AI Group is led by Dr Jan Kabatek and brings together researchers with strong expertise in artificial intelligence, data science, and applied economics.
We are part of CALIBER (Collaborative AI Laboratory in Business and Economic Research), a faculty-wide AI initiative led by Dr Kabatek. Through CALIBER, we benefit from the expertise of a diverse network of AI researchers across business, economics, and computer science, enhancing the scope and impact of our work.
