"AI Training for Library Patrons" Interest Group

Interested in delivering patron programming about AI?  From making fun images to serious discussions about misinformation, there is a lot to talk about!

We're forming a volunteer interest group for public library staff interested in collaborating on the development of a shared patron training curriculum about AI and related topics.  The curriculum will be released under a Creative Commons license so it's freely re-usable by libraries around the world.  

Topics may include:

Trying Google Docs "Help Me Write" AI

There are a lot of companies working on AI-based products and services right now.  In our AI workshops for public librarians, we primarily use tools from OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT.  But we also stay up-to-date on the other players, including Google.

As of today, we still view OpenAI's GPT-4 as the most useful general AI model, whether proprietary or open source.  Lots of AI-based products and services, including our own PLAID training app, are built around OpenAI's models.  But Google has recently announced a push to integrate their "Duet AI" into their Google Workspace offerings.  These are presumably variations of the beta AI tools that have been in Workspace for a while, and they're intended to compete with Microsoft's Copilot offerings in Office.

In a live demo this week, we tried it out!