to achieve specific goals with minimal human oversight. Unlike traditional AI that relies heavily on human input and predefined rules, agentic AI systems can plan, act, learn, and improve their performance independently, adapting to dynamic environments.”
He raised the issue of AI agents, and the existential spectre of AI induced redun- dancy. Would enhanced AI productivity lead to a reduced workforce? Safer that we all become plumbers and waiters. Gen- erative AI has ushered in an era of data uncertainty and is rapidly deconstructing our established normal. Whatever hap- pened to deep search capability? Andrew gave us an overview and comparison of Chat GPT, Gemini and Copilot and how they trawl and synthesise information. I asked him if we were revisiting the
same old, same old. Old wine in new bottles. New tech, but the same traditional library values. It happened with the rise of the web in the 1990s when we naively attempted to catalogue internet resources. Initia- tives like OMNI – Organising Medical Networked Information – were laudable attempts to bring a sense of order to the web. We face the exact same issues with AI. How do we address information accuracy, integrity and quality? How do
we banish AI hallucinations and evaluate information outputs? How do we deter- mine the provenance of information on the understanding that there is a crucial corpus of academic knowledge locked behind firewalls that AI hasn’t managed to pillage. AI prompt skills have become the new information literacy. The search strategy is the key. But it always was.
Fight for transparency
It’s crucial that we lead on unveiling the lack of transparency around AI, to be wary of the fact that our future is being shaped by a government who has no concept of our values. We play a fundamental role as the curators, preservers, protectors of data and information and can help nurture an AI literate society. We are only at the start of an automated journey powered by AI, so a constant a weather eye and review of the landscape is essential.
Are we at the mercy of AI? Do we need to rise and tame the beast? A key solution arising from the conference is the need to advocate for decent, ethical and transparent knowledge and information management; to confront the decision makers. Louis summed it up in a nutshell: “To be influ- ential, you need to be in the room.” We also need to value our reputation as
a trustworthy profession calling out mis- information and disinformation. We are here to cut through the noise, to liberate the misinformed, to speak with one voice. “Hopeful technologists” using IT and AI for personal good. I’d like to end this article with a homage to Conference keynote Michael Rosen, Author, Poet and Broadcaster. His eloquence and humanity reduced some delegates to tears. He celebrated the power of the written word after being in an induced coma during the COVID pandemic. A vast multidisciplinary team of medics and care workers diarised his day-to-day progress and he lay oblivious to their interventions. Their observations and encouraging, kind words formed an essential conversation where he couldn’t answer back. The diary is an enormous symbol of the kindness of strangers. “I wish you safely home soon,” wrote one. “Keep fighting.”
Fight we must. Let’s be confident and claim the AI space. So many questions. So much unanswered. IP
Link
ChatGPT May Be Eroding Critical Thinking Skills:
https://time.com/7295195/ai-chatgpt-google-learning-school/
Autumn 2025
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