The Digital Librarian

From AI disruption to increasing financial strain on our digital collections, the year 2025 promises to be filled with both challenges and opportunities for libraries. That said, what are the tech trends for libraries in 2025?

A Tipping Point for Library Digital Collections

For years, library ebook and e-audiobook collections have grown in size, accounting for both a larger percentage of material expenditures and circulation numbers. Libraries have also added new material types, with recent investments in streaming video platforms. Even as these collections become increasingly critical to library lending, publishers’ exorbitant pricing and unfair terms are rendering these collections financially unsustainable. Libraries throughout the United States and Canada are finding it necessary to throttle patron usage, reduce the number of titles purchased, and in some cases, even end some digital lending services.

While past attempts at legislative solutions have failed, there is renewed optimism for new state-level bills in Rhode Island and New York, which seek prevent exploitative industry practices and lower costs for libraries. Such legislation has been tailored to survive challenges on their constitutionality. If successful, one should expect other states to advocate for similar legislation.

Rise of Library-Specific AI Tools, and Evaluative Frameworks

With the rise of generative AI, libraries should expect to be approached by traditional library vendors offering “AI-enhanced” services. ScopusAI being one such example. As fast as AI has progressed, there have been surprisingly few products brought to market, or as Marshall Breeding stated in his 2024 Library Systems Report

“While many companies…have announced ongoing plans to add generative AI to their offerings, this technology has not yet been integrated in any significant way. As the industry continues to work on harnessing AI in ways that limit bias and error, libraries can anticipate more prominent use of this technology in products within the next year or so.”

Given the numerous points of friction that exist between generative AI and the librarianship, cautious development is not only good, but necessary! The companion piece to incoming library-specific AI tools, is the development of two broad frameworks; a staff AI literacy framework, and an AI tool evaluation framework. There is growing progress on both fronts! Some recent examples include:

• Sandy Hervieux and Amanda Wheatley’s Six Frames for AI Literacy, and ROBOT test for evaluating tools.
• Susan Gardner Archambault and José J. Rincón’s REACT Framework.

Navigating a More Treacherous Information Environment

As with the rise of the world wide web, artificial intelligence represents a complication of our information environment–the quantity of info has increased, not necessarily its quality. Expect to see AI generated content make its way to academic journals, library digital collections be flooded with AI authored books and audiobooks of dubious origin, and internet search results to battle SEO spam. This will all require that librarians and other information professionals remain skeptical, vigilant, and determined in our pursuit and curation of accurate information.

Libraries will need to consider the place AI authored materials have within our acquisitions. Are new collection development policies necessary–and are they even enforceable? One can expect to see libraries putting pressure on distributors of both print and digital materials to, at a minimum, disclose when titles are AI-authored.

Reassessing What it Means to Be Computer Literate

It’s a fairly standard hiring practice to ask prospective employees “Are you computer literate?”. That being said, the definition of computer literate has changed over time. When we think of traditional computer literacy, we likely think of word processing software, the internet search, communication tools (such as email), and a general understanding of the Windows operating system. All of those rather core elements of computer literacy are now being impacted by AI, from the rise of conversational/AI-powered search to the integration of generative AI into collaborative work suites and operating systems, both desktop and mobile.

In the year 2025, to be computer literate, one must be AI literate. As is often the case with new terminologies, different definitions abound. One good description from Digital Promise states that AI literacy

…includes the knowledge and skills that enable humans to critically understand, use, and evaluate AI systems and tools to safely and ethically participate in an increasingly digital world.

Library professionals should plan on making AI literacy a primary focus of both their individual and organizational professional development efforts.

Updating Our Approach to Internet Safety

Libraries have provided critical community access to the internet, while promoting both digital literacy and digital citizenship. As AI continues to insinuate itself in our online activities, new dangers have emerged, and we will need to redouble our efforts in this arena.

Looking at our young adult patrons, we have seen AI chatbots that may encourage self-harm, promote eating disorders, or otherwise impart bad information persuasively. Some AI Chatbots may be addictive in nature–perhaps by design! There is ongoing scholarship exploring the relationship teens have with generative AI, but one thing seems clear–parents are largely unaware of their children’s activities, and libraries can help to fill this information vacuum.

Throughout the years, libraries have helped to educate our seniors, in order to protect them against financial scams–and artificial intelligence now represents it’s bleeding edge. The National Council On Aging has assembled a good resource that can help form the basis of library-led instruction.

Until Next Time!

Wishing everyone happiness and good health in 2025. This year promises to be an interesting one for us all! As always, if you’re seeking a keynote speaker for your library event, feel free to reach out. In other news:

• I’ll be at the 2025 Computers in Libraries Conference in Arlington, Virginia this March 24-27. I’ll be conducting a 3-hour pre-conference workshop “Getting Your Public Library AI-Ready,” along with a 45 minute session on navigating AI disruption. You can view the full program here.
• I’ll be giving the keynote speech for the 2025 Evergreen International Online Conference. My talk will be “True to Our Mission: Libraries, Emerging Technologies, and the Road Ahead.” The event is set to take place on May 12-14.
• I was recently interviewed by the Library Journal of the Slovak National Library, where I talked about AI, technological change, and the value of libraries. You can view the full journal here. My interview is in English, and starts on page 6.
• I was recently a guest on the Adventures in Parenting Podcast, where I shared a parent’s perspective on engaging with generative AI.