Miklós Sebők gave a presentation on Artificial Intelligence in University Education and Scientific Research. He focused on the applications of generative AI in education and research, particularly in plagiarism detection, classification tasks, and the modernization of student reporting and assessment.
A new study by Rebeka Kiss and Miklós Sebők, titled “The concept of tailor-made laws and legislative backsliding in Central–Eastern Europe,” has been published in Comparative European Politics. The research examines ‘tailor-made laws’—legislation that codifies individual cases under the guise of general rules—and their role in legislative backsliding within Central–Eastern Europe. The authors argue that these laws, which directly or indirectly affect specific individuals or institutions, serve as empirical markers of the shift from liberal to illiberal democracies. Through case studies, they demonstrate how such laws are used to implement discretionary reward and punishment policies, potentially undermining the broader public interest. The full study is available here. Kiss, R., Sebők, M. (2025). The concept of tailor-made laws and legislative backsliding in Central–Eastern Europe. Comparative European Politics.
Miklós Sebők gave a presentation on making computational methods more accessible to a broader community at the Computational Communication Science Lab of the University of Vienna. In his talk, titled “Leveraging Large Language Models and Generative AI for Social Research: The Babel Machine Approach,” he introduced The Babel Machine toolkit and discussed the development of AI-supported research, as well as the unification of an otherwise fragmented research field in the social sciences. The presentation covered the application of generative AI in political and social science research, along with the effective use of advanced data analysis methods.
Presentation by Miklós Sebők, director of poltextLAB, at the Portfolio Signature PRO investors’ club event titled “The Limits of Global AI Governance and Hungary’s Position in the Intensifying AI Race.” In his presentation, he discussed the AI competition between China and the USA, particularly developments in the field of language models, and their impact on Hungary. He highlighted the international challenges of AI governance and the shortcomings of regulatory frameworks that influence technological development and the competitiveness of nations. The event concluded with a panel discussion, where industry experts debated current investment strategies and the economic impacts of AI technology.
On February 27, 2025, poltextLAB organized a full-day Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) training for researchers of HUN-REN. The professional program, led by Miklós Sebők and Rebeka Kiss, aimed to provide a comprehensive overview of the application of generative artificial intelligence in scientific research, with a particular focus on methodological foundations, ethical considerations, and the integration of GenAI into specific research processes. More than 40 researchers from various HUN-REN research centers and institutes registered for the course. Participants came from institutions such as the Centre for Energy Research, the Centre for Economic and Regional Studies, the Biological Research Centre in Szeged, and the Centre for Social Sciences. Additionally, representatives from various other research institutes were also present, including the Institute for Nuclear Research, the Balaton Limnological Research Institute, the Institute of Earth Physics and Space Science, and the Institute of Experimental Medicine. Due to high demand, all available spots were filled within just a few hours. The full-day training was structured into three main blocks: The first part introduced participants to the fundamentals of generative artificial intelligence, including the functioning and limitations of large language models. The second block focused on the practice of prompt engineering, the selection of appropriate models, and cost comparisons. The final section centered on research applications, covering topic selection, literature analysis, and data analysis, while also addressing ethical and legal aspects such as data protection, intellectual property rights, and proper citation methods. The full training curriculum is available HERE.The photos of the training can be found HERE.