Laura Marshall: Library and Information Association of New Zealand Executive Director on AI books in libraries

Books written by artificial intelligence have been finding their way onto local library shelves, and they could become more common in the future. 

Newstalk ZB can reveal most libraries avoid buying AI-written books, but don't ban them, and some have added them to their collections by accident. 

Laura Marshall, Library and Information Association of New Zealand Executive Director, told Ryan Bridge there’s not that many AI books currently available in New Zealand. 

She doubts they’re going to fill an entire library with them, and she doubts in five years there will be many AI books that are good enough to pass the test to get into the library. 

However, most libraries are open to stocking AI books in the future if there’s customer demand. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
If you listen to the show yesterday, you know I
talked a lot about AI and AI taking over our
lives and taking over our jobs. Well, here's another prime
example of this. Turns out quite a few New Zealand's
Live of New Zealand's libraries either already have or are
open to stocking books written by AI authors. Laura Marshall
is the executive director at Library and Information Association New Zealand. Laura,

(00:22):
good morning, Good morning, Ryan Is. Do you know of
any AI written books in libraries yourself?

Speaker 2 (00:30):
Yes, there are a few, but from our experience and
talking to library managers, there's not that many. There's only
a couple. There's only a couple of supplies that even
provide them in New Zealand. So I don't believe that
there as many within New Zealand libraries.

Speaker 1 (00:45):
Yet would you read one?

Speaker 2 (00:48):
I'd probably read one just to see what it was like.
But to be honest, I think they're just an interpretation
of our thoughts. I think it's just a good copy,
so I'm not really there interested in exploring them long term,
but I'd probably read one just to see what it
was like.

Speaker 1 (01:04):
This is the problem, though, what if you read it
and it's good, you know, I mean, is that a
little bit scary that thought?

Speaker 2 (01:13):
To be honest, when I use AI myself, it's interpreting
my thoughts, but it never comes out perfect, and it's
never enough to entice me to think that it could
replace myself, or it's we give it the information. I
don't truly believe that AI could tell our stories. Especially
in New Zealand, we have very next stories. You have
people's experience as almost doing it's just interpreting those stories

(01:37):
and that information, and I don't believe that it can
really do that very well.

Speaker 1 (01:41):
Yet does AI?

Speaker 2 (01:43):
Well?

Speaker 1 (01:44):
I mean, I suppose the internet generally. Sometimes I'm surprised
libraries are still going. But then but then I walked
past them and they are full. So how do you
explain that with the Internet.

Speaker 2 (01:56):
So libraries are also community hubs to meet people, it's
places to go to community programs, it's places to interact.
They really are quite an amazing ecosystem. They also reflect
the community, so they're an amazing place. But believe it
or not, issues and libraries are actually going up. Just
because someone's reading a book online or on their iPad,

(02:18):
it doesn't mean they're not reading, so issues are just
going through the through the roof. Libraries have never been
more successful. They're just an amazing ecosystem, an amazing place,
and I don't think AI and the Internet is going
to turn that around.

Speaker 1 (02:31):
Okay, interesting, What about if there's a book that's written
by AI that's really good and that people want, like,
you know, there's people are asking it reception, whatever do
you think do you think her libraries should provide it?

Speaker 2 (02:45):
Yes, libraries usually do stock customer requests and it comes
down to how many times a book is issued. No,
I doubt they're going to fill an entire library full
of AI written books. And if we had this conversation
of five years, Ryan, I doubt there would be that
many books that we've good enough to pass the test
to get into the library. But yes, we do respond
to the public as well. We have to respond to

(03:07):
what people want to read. And I also believe that
if you're reading anything, it's better than reading nothing, getting
into the habit of literacy and reading a book, so
better better than nothing.

Speaker 1 (03:17):
Yeah. Absolutely, Hey, Laura, appreciate your time this morning. Thanks
for coming on the show. Laura Marshall. Library and Information
Association of New Zealand. For more from Early Edition with
Ryan Bridge, Listen live to news talks it'd be from
five am weekdays, or follow the podcast on iHeartRadio