The Australian Text Analytics Platform is an open source environment that provides researchers with tools and training for analysing, processing, and exploring text.

Text analytics is a suite of methods which enable data-driven research by extracting and analysing machine-readable information from within unstructured text. Due to the increasing availability of large amounts of unstructured text, such techniques are becoming more and more important across diverse research disciplines.

Text analysis tends to happen at either a basic, generic level (handled with existing software packages) or with custom code specifically developed by programmers for a particular project. ATAP will support researchers transitioning to code-based text analysis, with the resultant benefits of flexibility, reproducibility and reuse, and the possibility of exporting their results and workflows as a fully documented research object.

ATAP will be a collaborative, cloud-based workbench environment, bringing together users and providers of data and text analytics tools. It will encourage researchers to adopt new methods, leading to greater flexibility and transparency in research workflows. The platform will be accessible to researchers with a broad range of experience and skills (including beginners) and across a range of disciplines. Support provided by the platform will include hands-on workshops, online training modules and online office hours, as well as advice and collaboration in selected partnerships.

The Australian Text Analytics Project (ATAP) received investment from the Australian Research Data Commons (ARDC). The ARDC is funded by the National Collaborative Research Infrastructure Strategy (NCRIS).