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The rise of artificial intelligence in libraries: the ethical and equitable methodologies, and prospects for empowering library users

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Abstract

Libraries have always been a repository of knowledge, a place where people from all walks of life can come to learn and grow. In today’s fast-paced world, libraries must keep up with the changing times in order to remain relevant. Artificial intelligence (AI) is one of the most promising technologies that can help libraries achieve this goal. AI can help libraries automate processes, provide personalized services, and improve user experiences. However, with great power comes great responsibility, and AI is no exception. Libraries have an ethical and equitable promise to their users, and AI must be deployed in a way that upholds these promises. This study explores the ethical and equitable use of AI in libraries, how it can empower users, and what librarians need to consider when implementing AI. The result of the reviewed articles showed that 1499 out of 170,262 papers have been identified as describing AI in libraries through ethical and equitable methodologies and prospect for empowering library users. The future studies can focus on other professional terms, such as Trustworthy AI, Fairness in AI, Explainable AI, and Human-in-the-loop, and how this can impact libraries, and other professionals.

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Data availability

We do not analyze or generate any datasets, because our work proceeds within a theoretical approach. One can obtain the relevant materials from the references presented below.

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  1. Department of Library and Information Science Education, College of Information and Technology Education, Lagos State University of Education, Lagos State, Nigeria

    James Oluwaseyi Hodonu-Wusu

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Hodonu-Wusu, J.O. The rise of artificial intelligence in libraries: the ethical and equitable methodologies, and prospects for empowering library users. AI Ethics (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s43681-024-00432-7

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