We live in a highly interconnected and digitalised world, where information spreads rapidly among vast numbers of people, shaping human societies in unprecedentedly complex and large-scale ways. Empirical evidence and theoretical models suggest that our unique ability to learn culturally and collaborate collectively has made human behaviour remarkably rich and societies deeply interwoven with evolving culture. Despite long-standing interest in collective behaviour, fully understanding it requires insights from a diverse range of scientific disciplines, including behavioural science, evolutionary biology, computer science, statistical physics, and the social sciences and humanities.

At the Computational Group Dynamics (COGNAC) lab, we integrate diverse quantitative empirical approaches—including large-scale online behavioural experiments—with mathematical modelling as a common language to study social learning, group decision making, cooperation, coordination, and eco- evolutionary dynamics in both living and artificial systems. Our goal is to uncover the principles of collective behaviour and cultural evolution across humans, non-human organisms, and artificial entities.