AI Shapes the Future of Higher Education and Libraries
amsterdam, vrijdag, 24 oktober 2025.
Expert panels discuss how artificial intelligence (AI) can transform the roles of educators and libraries. AI offers new possibilities for education and information provision but also presents new challenges. While AI can quickly generate courses and simplify tasks, the panellists emphasise that the goal is to support educators, not replace them. Universities must invest in training to use AI effectively and address ethical implications. With the right approach, AI can improve the quality of education.
A New Phase for Information and Public Communication
Expert panels within higher education and library circles highlight that artificial intelligence (AI) is causing a fundamental shift in how information and public communication are organised: AI is seen as a tool that can alleviate the workload of educators and information specialists and create new opportunities for reaching target audiences [1][5][6]. At the same time, these panels stress that implementation requires targeted training and attention to ethics and the evaluation of learning outcomes and information reliability [1][6][5].
Personalised Information Provision: Customisation with Data
AI systems make it possible to personalise informational materials—from tailored study materials to targeted audience messages—by aligning content with user profiles and behavioural patterns, provided institutions invest in the skills to use these systems [1][6]. Practical example: tools and prompt strategies for education help teachers quickly generate personalised lesson plans and assignments using AI, provided the prompts are carefully crafted and tested [4][1].
Chatbots and Digital Desks for Public Services
Chatbots and automated help channels are increasingly used as the first point of contact for the public and students; university services and libraries offer multiple contact methods (email, phone, chat) and experiment with AI layers on top of these channels to automate routing and simple queries [8][5]. Such AI chatbots can reduce waiting times and provide 24/7 availability, but they require clear escalation paths to human staff and testing for reliability [8][5].
AI-Driven Information Campaigns and Measuring Effectiveness
AI-driven campaigns use data analysis to optimise audience segmentation, timing, and message variations; higher education institutions and libraries launch pilot projects to measure effectiveness and determine ROI, with pilots planned through 2026 according to internal reports [5]. Since AI generates insights, organisations must also invest in competencies to interpret these insights—a reason why new competency frameworks for library staff have been approved and made available to support training and assessment [6].
Practical Example: Tools for Diverse Users
Specifically, the ‘Goblin Tools’ collection offers the free tool Magic ToDo, which breaks down complex tasks into manageable subtasks—an example of how AI or AI-like tools can enhance the accessibility of information and tasks, particularly for users with ADHD or autism [2]. Additionally, libraries and educational institutions publish prompt libraries and guides for teachers to effectively integrate AI with pedagogy and create comprehensible content [4][1].
Benefits: Reach, Scale, and Accessibility
AI can scale information, serve multiple channels simultaneously, and simplify complex content into understandable summaries or step-by-step instructions, thereby better reaching various audiences, including those with diverse learning needs [1][2][4]. By using AI as a starting point for course design or information products, workload can decrease, and space can be created for human refinement and interaction [1][8].
Challenges: Privacy, Inclusivity, and Reliability
The implementation of AI brings clear risks: privacy concerns around data processing, potential biases in models that disadvantage certain groups, and uncertainty about the reliability of automatically generated content—issues explicitly raised during panels and requiring policy frameworks and transparent assessment [1][5][6]. Libraries and universities stress that training and standards are needed to build both technical and ethical competencies [6][5].
Accessibility of Complex Information with AI
AI applications can translate complex scientific or policy content into simpler language, visual summaries, or step-by-step instructions, but such translations must be validated by experts to preserve nuance and accuracy—a practical approach currently recommended in pilots and guidelines [4][2][1].
What Organisations Are Doing Now: Guidelines and Pilots
Organisations are mapping AI competencies and launching pilots to test applications; the ACRL approved a set of AI competencies for academic library staff to support training and implementation, and universities are planning and conducting pilots to evaluate AI in education and library services [6][5]. These measures underscore that the adoption of AI must be accompanied by training, assessment, and governance [6][1][5].