Research Institute for Arts and Technology
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 | |
| Abbreviation | RIAT |
|---|---|
| Predecessor | 5uper.net |
| Formation | 2012 |
| Merger of | Artistic Bokeh Artistic Technology Lab |
| Type | Non-profit organization |
| Legal status | Active |
| Location | |
| Fields | Open Hardware Publishing Cryptocurrencies Media art |
| Website | riat |
The Research Institute for Arts and Technology (RIAT) is an independent and international research institute established in 2012[1] in Austria and operating internationally. The aim of the institute is to investigate how technology and art can relate and inform each other in areas that include: open hardware, publishing, epistemic culture, cryptocurrencies and the blockchain.[2] In 2017 RIAT was recognized by the European Commission and Ars Electronica for innovation at the interface of science, technology and art with a STARTS Prize Honorary Mention.[3]
The organisation began as Artistic Bokeh in 2012. It established itself as the Research Institute for Arts and Technology in 2015 after artists Bernhard Cella and Matthias Tarasiewicz made a decision to depart the University of Applied Arts Vienna. Since 2012 Cella and Tarasiewicz had both been leading research projects supported by the Austrian Science Fund[4][5] at the Center of Art and Knowledge Transfer within the University of Applied Arts Vienna.[6][7][8] Alongside the projects that were relocated from the University of Applied Arts Vienna, the other Viennese art initiatives Coded Cultures, 5uper.net and Artistic Bokeh were also integrated into the institute.[9]
In July 2018, RIAT researcher Andrew Newman announced at the Gray Area Festival that the institute now refers to itself as the RIAT Institute for Future Cryptoeconomics[10][11] although it is still legally named Research Institute for Arts and Technology.[12] Since then the institute has predominantly focused on blockchain and cryptocurrency research, joining a consortium of Austrian research institutions to establish the Austrian Blockchain Center.[13][14] In November 2018 the Austrian Blockchain Center received €20 million in funding from the Austrian Research Promotion Agency[15] and is described as the world's largest blockchain competence center.[16] RIAT leads the research area Data Science Methods for Blockchain Analytics & Predictions in partnership with the Austrian Institute of Technology.[13]
RIAT has organized and participated in numeous international conferences on the topics of hacker culture, cypherpunk, and open source hardware[17].
RIAT yearly organizes the Critical Decentralization Cluster at C3 (Chaos Communication Congress), and is an official cluster (orbit) since 2018[18]. Since January 2026 RIAT also co-organizes the Decentralized Internet and Privacy Devroom at FOSDEM[19].
