In the Walled Garden: Challenges and Opportunities for Research on the Practices of the AI Tech Industry

Research on technology companies and their workers can externalize otherwise invisible and tacit workplace approaches, identify organizational constraints to creating more ethical AI systems, help ground interventions in real-world organizational realities, and result in the co-creation of better business practices for organizations. However, getting access to technology companies is difficult for external researchers. In this paper, I draw from insights gained by conducting research on and with industry professionals. I present four challenges when conducting industry-focused research on responsible AI. I also present methods I used to navigate each challenge. Finally, I highlight opportunities for the tech industry to lower the barriers to external research. This work aims to share ways of navigating methodological challenges and encourage better transparency in the tech industry.