Europeana is a digital platform that brings together millions of cultural heritage objects from European libraries, museums and archives. Launched in 2008, it provides access to a variety of digital resources, including books, paintings, photographs, letters, films and music.
In recent years, Europeana has been actively adopting artificial intelligence (AI) technologies to improve the search, organization and analysis of cultural objects. The AI4Culture project, for example, offers a platform with tools and resources on applying AI to cultural heritage. It provides step-by-step recipes for solving various tasks using AI, thus contributing to the empowerment of professionals in the field.
In addition, the CRAFTED project has developed an approach that combines AI algorithms with human validation to enrich cultural heritage metadata. This method includes data analysis, automatic enrichment, human validation of the results and refinement based on the feedback received, improving the accuracy and completeness of information about cultural objects.
In October 2024, the AI4Culture project held a series of online workshops on applying AI tools to cultural heritage data. Recordings of these events are available on the platform, allowing professionals to familiarize themselves with the latest methods and practices in this field.
However, according to Europeana, only about 10% of the world’s cultural heritage has been digitized, and only a third of this is available online. This underlines the need for further efforts to digitalize and open up access to cultural resources.
At the 2024 High-Level Conference on Artificial Intelligence in Museums, strategies for integrating AI into cultural heritage were discussed. Among the proposals were the creation of a European competence center for AI for cultural heritage, the formulation of a policy vision and regulatory framework, and financial investments in infrastructure and staff training.
Europeana is thus actively using artificial intelligence to enrich and simplify access to Europe’s cultural heritage, aiming to make it more accessible and understandable to a wider audience.