How AI Will Transform Libraries & Librarianship 2025-2035?
The Silent Revolution Behind the Stacks
By 2035, the venerable institution that has served as civilisation's memory for millennia will be fundamentally transformed - perhaps even unrecognisable to those who trained in the profession just a decade earlier.
The integration of generative AI and autonomous agents isn't merely adding new tools to the librarian's arsenal, it's fundamentally redefining what a library is and what librarians do. The profession stands at a crossroads, facing extraordinary opportunities for growth and innovation.
What follows isn't a utopian vision of technology solving all challenges, but an exploration of how this profession might evolve to remain not just relevant but central to our knowledge ecosystems in the age of artificial minds.
Important note: The roles, skills and approaches described in this article represent emerging trends and future possibilities for the period 2025-2035. While some institutions are beginning to explore these directions, many of the positions and practices are new. This article offers a forward-looking perspective on how librarianship might evolve over the next decade, based on current technological trajectories and innovative thinking in the field.
To AI Guides: The Evolution of Librarian Identity
For centuries, academic librarians have been information managers, curating collections and guiding patrons through complex information landscapes. This identity is undergoing profound transformation.
As AI systems become increasingly capable of handling routine queries and information retrieval tasks, the traditional reference role - answering questions like "Where can I find books on Victorian literature?", is being augmented. Simple fact-finding can now be enhanced by sophisticated AI assistants, creating opportunities for librarians to focus on higher-value interactions.
This evolution creates space for more profound roles. As Dr. Eliza Blackwood, Director of Digital Transformation at the British Library, notes: "We're witnessing the most profound shift in librarianship since the invention of the printing press. The question isn't whether AI will change libraries, but how we can harness it to enhance our relevance."
The Rise of AI Literacy Specialists
Perhaps the most crucial emerging role is that of the AI Literacy Specialist. These professionals develop frameworks to help faculty and students critically evaluate, ethically use, and properly cite AI-generated content. They don't just teach how to use tools like Claude or Gemini, they foster a deeper understanding of how these systems work, their limitations, and potential biases.
Consider a scenario becoming common in academic libraries: A graduate student brings a literature review generated by an AI system, riddled with plausible-sounding but fabricated citations. The AI Literacy Specialist doesn't simply flag the errors - they use this as a teachable moment, demonstrating how to prompt, verify, and critically assess AI outputs.
Knowledge Synthesists: Beyond Information Provision
As autonomous research agents become capable of digesting thousands of articles in minutes, librarians are evolving from information providers to Knowledge Synthesists - professionals who partner with AI to transform fragmented information into cohesive, contextualised knowledge packages.
"The true value proposition shifts from finding information to making sense of it," explains Mohammed Al-Faraj, who researches information science futures at Cambridge. "Anyone can get facts from AI, but understanding what those facts mean, how they connect, and whether they're trustworthy, that's where human expertise becomes invaluable."
This shift is already evident in forward-thinking institutions where librarians are creating domain-specific knowledge graphs and training custom AI models to support research in specialised fields. They're not just pointing to information, they're actively collaborating with AI to create new knowledge infrastructures.
The Transformation of Library Spaces and Services
The physical library, once defined by imposing stacks of books, is undergoing equally dramatic transformation. As collections increasingly exist in digital form and information access becomes ubiquitous, libraries are reimagining their physical footprint.
"The library is evolving beyond a warehouse of books," asserts urban planner Sophia Williams, who specialises in public institutions. "It's transforming into something perhaps more vital: centres for human connection, collaboration, and innovation in an increasingly digital world."
Experiential Knowledge Commons
Progressive institutions are converting traditional spaces into what might be called Experiential Knowledge Commons, environments designed not just for storing information but for creating, experiencing, and sharing it. These reimagined spaces focus on functions that AI cannot replicate: collaboration, community, and embodied learning experiences.
At the University of Manchester, traditional reference sections have evolved into "knowledge commons", flexible spaces where AI-enabled surfaces respond to voice commands and collaborative work happens in technology-rich environments. The Glasgow Public Library has developed its reference section into a "digital citizenship centre" where residents learn to navigate AI tools, protect their data privacy, and critically evaluate information.
Immersive Learning Architects
This spatial transformation has given rise to a new specialisation: Immersive Learning Architects. These professionals design AR/VR educational experiences where physical collections and digital resources seamlessly intertwine. They create immersive environments that bring knowledge to life in ways that flat text, whether on paper or screens, cannot achieve.
"We're moving beyond just providing access to information," explains James Chen, head of emerging technologies at Manchester University Library. "We're creating experiences that transform how people engage with knowledge."
Imagine walking into a library and donning a headset that transports you to ancient Alexandria, with an AI guide explaining how knowledge was organised in the classical world. Or visualising complex molecular structures in three dimensions, manipulating them with your hands while an AI narrates their properties and functions. These aren't science fiction scenarios but emerging practices in forward-thinking institutions.
The Ethics Frontier: Algorithmic Accountability and Digital Trust
As AI systems increasingly mediate access to knowledge, libraries are becoming crucial sites for ensuring these systems serve the public good. This has given rise to roles focused on algorithmic accountability and digital trust.
Algorithmic Accountability Officers
A particularly significant emerging role is that of the Algorithmic Accountability Officer—experts who audit AI systems for bias, transparency issues, and ethical concerns. These professionals maintain "algorithm registries" that document the AI tools used across campus, examining them for potential biases or limitations.
"When we integrate AI systems into our libraries, we're making choices about how knowledge is organised, prioritised, and delivered," argues Dr. Amara Okafor, an information ethics researcher. "Libraries must position themselves as guardians of equitable and transparent knowledge systems."
This shift positions libraries not just as information providers but as champions of knowledge equity, ensuring that AI systems don't perpetuate existing biases or create new forms of information inequality.
Data Trust Stewards
Complementing this role are Data Trust Stewards, professionals who ensure the ethical governance of institutional data feeding into AI systems. They navigate the complex terrain between open access and privacy protection, creating frameworks for responsible data sharing.
"The library has always been more than a collection of books—it's been a democratic institution that treats all knowledge seekers equally," notes veteran librarian Thomas Wilson. "We ensure AI systems maintain that democratic ethos, even as their inner workings grow more complex."
The Academic Knowledge Ecosystem Reimagined
Perhaps the most profound transformation lies in how libraries are reshaping the broader academic knowledge ecosystem. Beyond their traditional role as repositories, they're becoming active agents in reforming how knowledge is created, shared, and evaluated.
Scholarly Communication Reformation
Forward-thinking libraries are leading the transformation of academic publishing beyond static articles toward interactive, AI-navigable knowledge objects. They're developing platforms where research outputs include not just text but code, data, visualisations, and interactive elements that AI systems can parse and humans can explore.
"The traditional journal article is a format designed for the print era," explains Elena Petrova, director of digital scholarship at a major research library. "We're moving toward knowledge objects that machines can understand and humans can interact with in more dynamic ways."
This reformation extends to new publishing models that leverage AI for curation, discovery, and evaluation, potentially enhancing the traditional peer review process while maintaining scientific rigour.
Cross-disciplinary Translation Specialists
A fascinating emerging role addresses a perennial challenge in academic research: communication across disciplinary boundaries. Cross-disciplinary Translation Specialists help both humans and AI systems navigate terminology and methodological differences across academic fields.
"Different disciplines often use the same terms to mean different things, or different terms to describe the same phenomena," explains Dr. Jonathan Rivera, who specialises in interdisciplinary research support. "We're developing knowledge graphs and conceptual maps that help both AI systems and human researchers translate between these different academic languages."
This work becomes increasingly vital as AI systems encourage cross-disciplinary exploration but may miss nuanced differences in how terms are used across fields.
Dynamic Content Creation: Beyond Static Collections
Another transformative approach emerging in progressive institutions is Dynamic Content Creation, libraries generating custom datasets, simulations, or textbooks on-demand through AI rather than simply providing access to existing resources.
Imagine a student requesting not just books on quantum physics, but a customised textbook generated specifically for their learning style and background knowledge. Or a researcher requiring not just papers on climate change impacts, but a synthesised report comparing methodologies across selected studies.
"We're moving from curating existing knowledge to actively creating new knowledge products tailored to specific needs," explains Dr. Sarah Johnson, head of research services at Oxford's Bodleian Library. "This shifts the value proposition from access to creation."
This approach leverages AI's capacity to dynamically assemble and format content while relying on librarians' expertise to ensure quality, relevance, and ethical considerations. The librarian becomes less a finder of information and more a co-creator of knowledge products.
What AI Enhances
As AI capabilities expand, library leaders are quick to identify the uniquely human aspects of librarianship that AI enhances rather than replaces.
"AI can find information, but human librarians understand what a student really needs when they ask about complex research topics," explains research librarian Sarah Johnson. "AI excels at processing vast amounts of data, while librarians excel at understanding context, nuance, and the human dimensions of information needs."
Human librarians bring critical judgment that AI systems complement:
Deep evaluation of source credibility in controversial or emerging topics
Sophisticated navigation of complex ethical considerations around access and privacy
Cultural sensitivity to community needs and values
Creative programming that responds to local contexts and interests
These irreplaceable human elements explain why the integration of AI creates exciting opportunities for new roles that blend technological expertise with the core humanistic values of librarianship.
Human-AI Synergy
The most successful approaches to this transition are those that thoughtfully integrate human and artificial intelligence in complementary ways. The British Library's "AI Transition Framework" offers one model, based on four principles:
Upskill and Expand: Investing in staff through intensive training programmes to develop new AI-related capabilities
Augment and Enhance: Using AI to enhance human capabilities and create new services
Community First: Evaluating all technological changes based on their impact on patron experience and community needs
Ethics as Foundation: Subjecting all AI systems to rigorous ethical review before deployment
This approach recognises that AI integration is not merely a technological challenge but a human and organisational one. It acknowledges that the most valuable aspects of librarianship—critical thinking, ethical judgment, empathy, cultural sensitivity—are enhanced rather than diminished through thoughtful integration of AI capabilities.
The Library Reimagined
The library of 2035 will embrace new roles and opportunities. The technological capabilities and changing patron expectations all point toward a future where AI systems enhance and amplify the work of human librarians.
This evolution represents an exciting new chapter in the library's story. The library as an institution has survived countless technological revolutions, from handwritten manuscripts to the printing press, from card catalogues to online databases. Each transition has required reinvention, but the core mission has endured and strengthened.
"Libraries have always been about connecting people with knowledge," reflects Elena Petrova, who is training to become one of the new AI librarians. "The medium changes, the methods evolve, but that fundamental purpose remains. We're entering an era where we can do this work more effectively and with greater impact than ever before."
As AI augments the routine tasks of librarianship, human professionals have the opportunity to focus on what truly matters: the transformative power of knowledge, equitably shared. The library reimagined has the potential to be more impactful than ever, provided we navigate this transition with wisdom, vision, and a clear understanding of what libraries have always been at their best: not merely repositories of information, but catalysts for human flourishing.
