Yuening Li

Dr Yuening Li is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the ADAPT Research Ireland Centre at University College Dublin (UCD). Her current research project, AI in Irish Banking: Ethics, Risk and Responsibility, examines how artificial intelligence is being integrated into banking services and explores issues of transparency, risk governance, and accountability in AI-enabled financial systems. The project is conducted under the mentorship of Professor Aphra Kerr. Yuening’s research focuses on the platformisation of financial services and the social implications of digital infrastructures in everyday economic life. Her doctoral research, titled Platformisation of Banking in Ireland: App Designs, Changing Imaginaries, and Emergent Barriers, examined how mobile banking apps reshape financial services through platform design, institutional imaginaries, and evolving user responsibilities. Drawing on economic sociology, science and technology studies (STS), and the political economy of the internet, her work explores how digital platforms transform financial practices, regulatory governance, and user experience. Dr Li completed her PhD in Sociology at the National University of Ireland, Maynooth. She also holds an MSc in Economy, Risk and Society from the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), an MA in Digital Assets and Media Management from King’s College London, and a BA in Communication from Sun Yat-sen University (SYSU). Her research has examined the design and governance of digital banking platforms in Ireland, particularly issues of inclusivity and access barriers affecting migrants, older adults, and other marginalised groups. She has also conducted research in the UK on how older adults adapt to and navigate digital banking services. Methodologically, her work combines qualitative digital methods, including app walkthrough methods, policy analysis, and user research, to examine the relationship between platform design, institutional governance, and everyday financial practices. Her broader research interests include digital platforms, financial technologies, AI governance, and emerging forms of digital and user labour.