North Carolina’s public libraries will help shape new approaches to artificial intelligence literacy statewide through a new university research initiative at the University of North Carolina (UNC) at Chapel Hill.
Starting this summer and running through 2028, the two-year Local Libraries and Generative AI project will bring university researchers and local librarians together to study how different communities across the state are using generative AI, and how libraries can support residents in understanding and using the technology responsibly, according to a news release yesterday.
The news release said that local libraries can be trusted sources of information in their communities, but they lack the necessary research base to lead on AI literacy.
“People have always turned to libraries to make sense of new technologies, and today that technology is AI,” UNC librarian María Estorino said in a public statement. “By partnering with our public library colleagues, we can build a foundation for AI proficiency in our communities driven by trust and local realities.”
Researchers from UNC Chapel Hill’s School of Data and Information Sciences (SDIS) and university libraries will partner with public libraries to assess technology infrastructure, staff capacity and community attitudes toward AI. The research team will work with two cohorts of libraries in two phases, using lessons from the first cohort to refine their approach with the second, according to the news release.
The initiative complements other state projects in North Carolina aimed at expanding AI education in schools. For example, the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction first shared AI guidance in 2024, and has since hosted workshops, webinars and even an AI Solve-a-Thon contest that prompted students to use AI to help address real-world problems, from DMV headaches to homelessness.
Additionally, North Carolina joins a broader national effort to expand AI literacy through libraries and other public institutions.
In 2025, the University of Oklahoma received a $150,000 grant to explore how AI could assist youth library programs. In New Jersey, libraries have banded together to offer AI training sessions through the AI Ambassadors series.
“Generative AI is changing how people seek, evaluate and use information, and communities are experiencing these technologies in very different ways,” Diane Kelly, professor and interim SDIS dean, said in a public statement. “This project is about understanding those differences and working collaboratively with libraries to identify approaches that are realistic, sustainable and matched to local needs.”