The Ministry of Culture's Libraries Department organised Wednesday the library and information centres specialists forum, titled "Emerging Technologies and Leveraging Artificial Intelligence in Libraries."
The event brought together library specialists from diverse sectors throughout the country.
To mark this occasion, Director of the Libraries Department at the Ministry of Culture, Jassim Ahmed al-Buainain, said the forum was intended to forge communication and bonds among information and libraries' specialists in Qatar, emphasising that the ministry is always committed to offering superb occupational support in the area of libraries and information centres to increase cultural awareness and share practical applications in this field.
Libraries are going through radical changes by virtue of rapid technological advancements, primarily the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) that alters the modus operandi of people's reaction to information, since AI provides innovative solutions and broadens libraries' horizons to further offer professional services, added al-Buainain.
He emphasised that libraries are facing daunting challenges in the rapidly advancing technological era, as the department requires big data to meet the diverse needs of users, highlighting that libraries always seek to combine AI technologies in their services so as to streamline the classification of books and other digital resources.
The specialists focused on library management concepts, the role of AI application in optimising libraries' activities, reinforcing their efficiency and performance, promoting their outputs, in addition to setting knowledge-based strategies and sharing successful experiences.
In addition, the forum featured a seminar titled, 'Emerging technologies in libraries,' moderated by Abdulkarim al-Humaydi, with the participation of Dr Saif al-Jabri from the Sultanate of Oman and Dr Khaled al-Halabi from Egypt. It discussed the technological advancements in libraries, virtual reality applications, digital marketing in libraries and cybersecurity.
The speakers discussed the impact of technological advancements on libraries, focusing on their ability to offer services and to optimise the user experience. They also addressed the concept of digital libraries, the transition from traditional paper-based libraries to electronic ones, and the available online resources.
The key takeaways from this seminar focused on the AI impact on libraries and information centres, along with the potential challenges and opportunities pertinent to implementing these changes in libraries' operation strategy, the merits generated by Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR) technologies in optimising library experience for visitors and providing broader access to information and educational material. In addition to digital marketing for libraries, cybersecurity, the relationship between them in the event of a breach of a personal account used for the library's digital marketing applications, as well as the high-consequence of data leaks involving the library or its users.
The participants capped off the seminar by emphasising the importance of giving foremost priority to library cybersecurity, taking precautionary measures to safeguard information and users, recruiting cybersecurity practitioners as part of the libraries' promotional strategy and maintaining a guidance content as an awareness tool for users of Internet safety and in protecting their digital identity.
