The ILLC is home to a thriving community of scholars, including philosophers, logicians, mathematicians, computer scientists, linguists, musicologists, and cognitive scientists, who share a fascination with the interdisciplinary study of information. At the ILLC we combine the problem solving skills from the sciences with the holistic and reflective view of the humanities to discover the principles that regulate information processing and find answers to some of the hardest challenges of our time.

We approach this goal through three interdisciplinary themes, each of them permeating through most of our research units:

• Learning & Reasoning: What are the elementary building blocks of reasoning? Can machine learning help us to get insights about how humans learn? What are successful strategies for solving hard reasoning problems efficiently? What counts as an explanation in different scientific fields?
• Language & Communication: How is it possible that a sequence of sounds, gestures, or written symbols can convey highly complex ideas and subtle feelings? What are similarities and differences between language and music, and other forms of communication? What allows people to flexibly communicate and how can we emulate this in machines to foster human-machine cooperation?
• Technology & Society: How can we enhance the societal benefits of digital technologies, ensuring they are more transparent and responsible? What are the opportunities and threats of technology for democratic values, justice and equality? How do new technologies reshape our cultures, identities, and social communities?

We investigate these fundamental questions with a rich array of methodologies—ranging from logic and mathematics to machine learning, experimental studies and philosophical analysis—to advance scientific knowledge, stimulate critical reflection, fuel technological innovation, and serve and inspire society.

The ILLC provides an inclusive and welcoming work environment, where different forms of talent are recognised and rewarded. We are convinced that diversity stimulates the institute’s academic culture, enhances individualwell-being, and contributes to improve research quality. Finally, researchers at the ILLC champion the Humboldtian model by closely interweaving research and education both at the Master’s and the Doctoral level,where education is intimately integrated into the research vision of the institute.