BY NATHAN COYLE / ON 2 JULY, 2025
At the International Digital Security Forum (IDSF) 2025, the Austrian Institute of Technology proudly launched the PeaceTech Alliance in Vienna — officially putting into public view what has long been one of Austria’s worst best-kept secrets.
The PeaceTech Alliance is a nationwide platform for co-design and collaboration on the use of technology and digital tools for peace. It reflects the real needs of peacebuilders on the ground and brings together leading institutions including Gaia-X Austria, the Austrian Centre for Peace, the International Institute for Peace, the Diplomatic Academy of Vienna, the University of Graz, and the University of Innsbruck — with a growing list of supporters joining quietly behind the scenes.
But while the IDSF launch brought the initiative into the spotlight, the work began years ago. The idea took shape in workshops across Vienna (2023) — and was first presented to the international peacebuilding community in Washington, DC (2023) at the Alliance for Peacebuilding. It continued to evolve through DataFest Tbilisi (2024) and the Data Science Conference Belgrade (2024). Each stop sharpened the focus — gathering insights, challenging assumptions, and identifying digital trends we need to address.
We were also invited to brief the UN Cyber Hub in New York, outlining how the PeaceTech Alliance aligns with the UN’s strategic work in the digital peace and security space.
In April 2025, we presented at the OSCE to highlight global data disparities and how they affect peacebuilding AI. Over 90% of AI training data comes from Europe and North America, yet most global conflicts occur elsewhere. This mismatch means AI often fails to reflect the realities of conflict in the Global South — especially in regions where traditional, community-based conflict resolution plays a central role.
“For AI to truly serve peace, it must be human-centric, culturally inclusive, and shaped by those most affected by conflict.”
Read our OSCE paper here
In May, the PeaceTech Alliance was also part of the UN Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice at the UN Office in Vienna — continuing the global conversation on tech for peace.
Since launching, we’ve had the pleasure of joining the Bertelsmann Stiftung’s launch of the Datenatlas Zivilgesellschaft — an incredible platform mapping data from over 650,000 civil society organisations in Germany — and participating in the IUFE Annual Conference, held in partnership with the Austrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ #TechDiplomacyTalks.
So yes, you could say we’ve been one of Vienna’s worst best-kept secrets — but not for much longer. You’ll be seeing a lot more of the PeaceTech Alliance, and the best place to follow along is right here.