Libraries Join AI4LAM as Founding Members

Susanne Mehrer, Dean of Libraries, is thrilled that Dartmouth has joined a community of practice working to shape the future of AI across cultural heritage environments. In signing the memorandum of understanding, the Libraries join 65 libraries, archives, and museums worldwide to “advance responsible, reliable, and trustworthy applications of artificial intelligence approaches to cultural heritage materials and environments,” says Mehrer. She adds, “As founding members, we’re now connected to this worldwide peer network collaboratively exploring, documenting, building, and sharing thoughtful approaches to cultural heritage stewardship.”

At a time when for-profit companies drive most of the AI discourse, from model development and regulation to future possibilities, “it’s crucial we participate in professional networks committed to humanity’s creative potential and to centering our communities when stewarding cultural heritage,” states Chamberlain. AI4LAM offers that as an international, participatory community focused on carefully advancing the use of artificial intelligence in and by libraries, archives, and museums. 

AI4LAM “envisions a future where the collective strength of libraries, archives, and museums drives innovation in the cultural heritage sector through responsible, reliable, and trustworthy AI solutions, fostering cultural development and societal growth for a better tomorrow.¹” 

Launched in 2018, AI4LAM was initially a collaboration between Stanford University Libraries and the National Library of Norway. Their first activities were applying AI to “transform, support, and shape cultural heritage and research, contributing to the commonwealth of knowledge for the benefit of humankind.²” A grand challenge like this, notes Mehrer, “demands both deep engagement with local communities and a collective effort among like-minded institutions.”

The Libraries’ role in AI4LAM is to collaborate in exploring and sharing secure, ethical, and responsible AI applications that support faculty, students, researchers, and other users of institutional AI resources. 

At Dartmouth Libraries, “we focus on leading with trust, curiosity, and respect for our community when we engage, discuss, and apply artificial intelligence in our work. As information professionals, we understand that we have a special responsibility to our community to critically engage and understand this emergent information ecosystem,” says Chamberlain. 

Our AI literacy work emphasizes the importance of centering human expertise and trusted resources while engaging seriously with emergent technological and media systems. Chamberlain expands by saying, “We help the community make sense of discipline-specific and general-purpose AI tools alongside trusted library catalogs, databases, and resources on the open web.”