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University Libraries 2026 Visiting Scholar Program: Ben Lee
Toward an AI Commons for Libraries: Where We Are and Where We Might Go from Here
2:30 pm –
4:00 pm
Love Library South
Room: Love South Auditorium 102
1248 R St
Lincoln NE 68508
Lincoln NE 68508
Additional Info: LLS
Virtual Location:
Zoom webinar
Target Audiences:
Contact:
Jannah Vanie, jvanie2@unl.edu
The University Libraries Professional Research and Creative Activities Committee is pleased to host library scholar, Benjamin Charles Germain Lee, as our 2026 visiting scholar. His public presentation will include Q&A. Refreshments will be served in the lobby of Love Library South after the program.
Toward an AI Commons for Libraries: Where We Are and Where We Might Go from Here
Talk of AI is ubiquitous, and libraries are no exception. Some have posed AI as a panacea for libraries, from reshaping discoverability to improving operations. Others have foregrounded the real and material harms of AI systems, from labor to patron privacy to intellectual property, which have only intensified over the past few years. Within this context, libraries across the world have begun exploring this tradeoff through experimenting with and operationalizing approaches using contemporary AI systems, including large language models and other generative AI models. This work has brought its own set of questions related to developing staff AI literacy, defining AI policies, and creating patron programming. In this talk, I will explore the state of the field surrounding these approaches, with a focus on efforts to apply AI to collections. Informed by my own research on “computing cultural heritage” and teaching focused on cross-campus AI literacy at the University of Washington, I will reflect on future directions for this collective work, and how libraries are uniquely positioned to contribute to the development of AI systems while also embodying library values through experimentation and even refusal.
Benjamin Charles Germain Lee is an Assistant Professor in the Information School at the University of Washington, where he has started the Lab for Computing Cultural Heritage. Ben’s research explores how to re-imagine search and discovery for large-scale digital collections held by libraries, archives, and museums. Previously, Ben has served as an Innovator in Residence as well as a Kluge Fellow in Digital Studies at the Library of Congress. He also was the inaugural Digital Humanities Fellow at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, a Visiting Fellow in Harvard’s History Department, and the Richard and Ina Willner Memorial Fellow in the Stroum Center for Jewish Studies at the University of Washington. Ben received his Ph.D. in Computer Science & Engineering from the University of Washington, which was supported by a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship in machine learning. His public writing has appeared in publications including The New Republic, WIRED, and Longreads.
Date: Wednesday, April 15, 2026
Time: 2:30 pm - 4:00 pm
Format: Hybrid, In-person and zoom webinar
Location: Love Library South, auditorium 102 and zoom webinar
If you need accommodations to participate in this event, please reach out to Libraries Employee Development Specialist, Jannah Vanie, at jvanie2@unl.edu
Toward an AI Commons for Libraries: Where We Are and Where We Might Go from Here
Talk of AI is ubiquitous, and libraries are no exception. Some have posed AI as a panacea for libraries, from reshaping discoverability to improving operations. Others have foregrounded the real and material harms of AI systems, from labor to patron privacy to intellectual property, which have only intensified over the past few years. Within this context, libraries across the world have begun exploring this tradeoff through experimenting with and operationalizing approaches using contemporary AI systems, including large language models and other generative AI models. This work has brought its own set of questions related to developing staff AI literacy, defining AI policies, and creating patron programming. In this talk, I will explore the state of the field surrounding these approaches, with a focus on efforts to apply AI to collections. Informed by my own research on “computing cultural heritage” and teaching focused on cross-campus AI literacy at the University of Washington, I will reflect on future directions for this collective work, and how libraries are uniquely positioned to contribute to the development of AI systems while also embodying library values through experimentation and even refusal.
Benjamin Charles Germain Lee is an Assistant Professor in the Information School at the University of Washington, where he has started the Lab for Computing Cultural Heritage. Ben’s research explores how to re-imagine search and discovery for large-scale digital collections held by libraries, archives, and museums. Previously, Ben has served as an Innovator in Residence as well as a Kluge Fellow in Digital Studies at the Library of Congress. He also was the inaugural Digital Humanities Fellow at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, a Visiting Fellow in Harvard’s History Department, and the Richard and Ina Willner Memorial Fellow in the Stroum Center for Jewish Studies at the University of Washington. Ben received his Ph.D. in Computer Science & Engineering from the University of Washington, which was supported by a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship in machine learning. His public writing has appeared in publications including The New Republic, WIRED, and Longreads.
Date: Wednesday, April 15, 2026
Time: 2:30 pm - 4:00 pm
Format: Hybrid, In-person and zoom webinar
Location: Love Library South, auditorium 102 and zoom webinar
If you need accommodations to participate in this event, please reach out to Libraries Employee Development Specialist, Jannah Vanie, at jvanie2@unl.edu
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This event originated in Libraries Employee Learning & Development.