Vision & Mission
We strive to empower all researchers to tell their story through thorough research and indisputable facts making them a credible voice in their field and focus.
Therefore, our mission is to provide independent, secure, and adaptive research tools and services that are accessible to traditional and non-traditional newsrooms, NGOs, and research institutions that tackle complex investigative reporting.
Too many times have we witnessed teams of journalists losing resources, stories, and money due to not being able to tap into technological tools or lack of technological literacy.
We recognize that some organizations and journalists don't have the resources to solve data and technology challenges in house. We've also witnessed others trying to solve this challenge by trying to reinvent the wheel or allocating resources in the wrong direction.
That's why we offer what we offer
We offer a client specific solution to a complex and multifaceted challenge. We offer investigative research tools hosted on secure and independent infrastructure. We also train and consult teams who are in search of new research workflows. Building on top of this, we help to develop and implement concrete editorial projects.
About investigativedata.io
Simon while building our servers. Photo: Vic Haster
investigativedata.io has been founded in 2023 by investigative data journalist Simon Wörpel. We build and manage secure infrastructure, such as Aleph, for investigative research teams. With a team of trusted collaborators we can adjust to the scale of any project easily.
We have worked on the CORRECTIV investigations Spendengerichte (court donations), Cumex Files, Grand Theft Europe and do database projects like FarmSubsidy, OpenSecurityData, FollowTheGrant, investigraph.eu.
Our clients include major news outlets and non-profit organizations in the U.S. and Europe as well as independent exile newsrooms in the carribbean area (and everywhere in between).
Teamwork
Our team consists of experienced investigative data journalists, designers, developers, project managers and system administrators who have worked for news outlets and research organizations all around the globe. Most of us have a background in investigative reporting.
Become part of it
We are always looking for new connections. Whether you want to be a collaborator or being part of the network, email us at: hi@investigativedata.org
Our Values
Sustainability
We want to provide long-term and reliable services to the clients we serve. Therefore we maintain an inner working structure that cares about the freedom and independence of our coworkers. We pay fair wages. We look for diverse backgrounds to inform an ever evolving practice. We explore alternative company structures that even strenghten our sustainability on a legal basis.
Ethics
We have strong and clear boundaries around the projects we take on to protect our collaborators and clients. We are transparent with all our coworkers, clients and stakeholders.
Accessibility
We ensure equitable access to databases and services whenever possible to empower marginalized communities to tell their own stories. We are committing to adapt to the communities we serve. If there are any accessibility requirements, please reach out to us.
Collaboration
We are mindful of our limitations and strive for inspiring collaboration within our coworking structure and our external networks. We believe that sharing our knowledge and making our technology open sourced is a key to achieving this. Therefore, we highly value and maintain our networks.
Impact
We are striving to be proactive in the face of injustice and adversity. We maintain autonomy and independence for ourselves and our clients to enable them to keep the ones in power accountable to the public eye.
What makes us special
Being an independent technology start up created by journalists for journalists, we make investigations efficient.
With our diverse backgrounds and networks that lead to independence, we make journalists boundless.
With our transferable knowledge and skills, we make projects adaptable.