The future of learning: Academic libraries are evolving into hubs where traditional knowledge meets cutting-edge AI, enhancing research and access to information. Image (and typos) generated by Nano Banana.
Source
Inside Higher Ed
Summary
A global Clarivate survey of more than 2,000 librarians across 109 countries shows that artificial intelligence adoption in libraries is accelerating, particularly within academic institutions. Sixty-seven percent of libraries are exploring or implementing AI, up from 63 percent in 2024, with academic libraries leading the trend. Their priorities include supporting student learning and improving content discovery. Libraries that provide AI training, resources, and leadership encouragement report the highest success and optimism. However, adoption and attitudes vary sharply by region—U.S. librarians remain the least optimistic—and by seniority, with senior leaders expressing greater confidence and favouring administrative applications.
Key Points
67% of libraries are exploring or using AI, up from 63% in 2024.
Academic libraries lead in adoption, focusing on student engagement and learning.
AI training and institutional support drive successful implementation.
Regional differences persist, with U.S. librarians least optimistic (7%).
Senior librarians show higher confidence and prefer AI for administrative efficiency.
The rise of AI in education presents a crucial dichotomy: are we using it to truly empower students and cultivate essential skills, or are we inadvertently outsourcing those very abilities to algorithms? This image visually explores the two potential paths for AI’s integration into learning, urging a thoughtful approach to its implementation. Image (and typos) generated by Nano Banana.
Source
The Irish Times
Summary
Jean Noonan reflects on the dual role of artificial intelligence in higher education—its capacity to empower learning and its risk of eroding fundamental human skills. As AI becomes embedded in teaching, research, and assessment, universities must balance innovation with integrity. AI literacy, she argues, extends beyond technical skills to include ethics, empathy, and critical reasoning. While AI enhances accessibility and personalised learning, over-reliance may weaken originality and authorship. Noonan calls for assessment redesigns that integrate AI responsibly, enabling students to learn with AI rather than be replaced by it. Collaboration between academia, industry, and policymakers is essential to ensure education cultivates judgment, creativity, and moral awareness. Echoing Orwell’s warning in 1984, she concludes that AI should enhance, not diminish, the intellectual and linguistic richness that defines human learning.
Key Points
AI literacy must combine technical understanding with ethics, empathy, and reflection.
Universities are rapidly adopting AI but risk outsourcing creativity and independent thought.
Over-reliance on AI tools can blur authorship and weaken critical engagement.
Assessment design should promote ethical AI use and active, independent learning.
Collaboration between universities and industry can align innovation with responsible practice.
Education must ensure AI empowers rather than replaces essential human skills.
by Patrick Shields – AI PhD Researcher, Munster Technological University
Estimated reading time: 5 minutes
Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) are increasingly looking to leverage AI, but successful adoption requires proper education and strategic integration. This image represents the crucial need for training and understanding to empower SMEs to harness AI for business growth and innovation. Image (and typos) generated by Nano Banana.
Aligning National AI Goals With Local Business Realities
As third-level institutions launch AI courses across multiple disciplines this semester, there is a unique opportunity to support an essential business cohort in this country: the small to medium-sized enterprise (SMEs). In Ireland, SMEs account for over 99% of all businesses according to the Central Statistics Office. They also happen to be struggling in AI adoption in comparison to their multinational counterparts.
Recent research has outlined how SMEs are adopting AI in a piecemeal and fragmented fashion, with just 10% possessing any AI strategy at all. Not having a strategy may indicate an absence of policy, and therein lies a significant communication issue at the heart of the AI adoption challenge. Further insights describe how four out of five business leaders believe AI is being used within their companies with little to no guardrails. This presents a significant challenge to Ireland’s National AI Strategy, which was originally published in 2021 but has since been updated to include several initiatives, such as the objective of establishing an AI awareness campaign for SMEs. The Government recognises that to achieve the original goal of 75% of all businesses embracing AI by 2030, and all the investment that this will encourage, it will be essential to address the gap between SMEs and their multinational counterparts. Perhaps these endeavours can be supported at third-level, especially given the percentage of businesses that fall into the SME bracket and the demand for upskilling.
Turning AI Potential Into Practical Know-How
Having spent the summer months of 2025 meeting businesses as part of a Chamber of Commerce AI mentoring initiative in the South East of Ireland, I believe there is a significant education gap here in which third-level institutions could assist in meeting. It became clear that the business representatives that I spoke to had serious questions about how to properly commence and embrace their AI journeys. For them, it wasn’t about the technical element because many of their existing programs and applications were adding AI features and introducing new AI-enabled tools which they could easily access. The prominent issue was in managing the process of deploying the technology in a way that matched employee buy-in with integrated, sustained & appropriate usage for maximum benefit. They require frameworks and education to roll this out effectively.
A real-world story:
As I returned to my AI adoption PhD studies this Autumn, I had the pleasure of meeting a part-time student who was employed by a local tech company in Cork. He wished to share the story of an AI initiative his employer had embarked upon, which left him feeling anxious. The company had rolled out an AI meeting transcription tool to the surprise of its employees. There had been no prior communication about its deployment, and the tool was now in active use inside the organisation. This particular student felt that the AI was useful but had its limitations, such as, for example, not being able to identify meeting speakers on the AI-generated meeting transcripts. He had his doubts as to whether the tool would stay in use at his workplace in the future, and he had not received any policy documents related to its correct handling. He also stated that he was not aware if the organisation had an AI strategy, and the manner in which the technology had been integrated into daily operations had left him and his colleagues feeling quite uneasy. He felt that the team would have benefited enormously from some communication before and during the rollout. This same student was looking to commence a course in effective AI adoption and proclaimed his belief that the industry was crying out for more training and development in this area.
The above tale of potentially failing deployment is unfortunately not an isolated case. Reports in the US have shown that up to 95% of AI pilots are failing before they ever make it to full production inside organisations. There may be many complex reasons for this, but one must certainly be the lack of understanding of the cultural impact of such change on teams, compounded by many examples of inadequate communication. It appears to me that despite the global investment in technology and the genuine intention to embrace AI, organisations continue to struggle with the employee education aspect of this transformation. If employers will prioritise training and development in partnership with education providers, they may dramatically increase their chances of success. This may include the establishment of joint frameworks for AI deployment and management with educational courses aligned to emerging business needs.
In adopting a people development approach, companies may not only improve the chances of AI pilot success but will foster trust, alignment and buy-in. Surely this is the real promise of AI, a better, brighter organisational future, starting this winter, where your greatest asset – your people, are not left completely out in the cold and supported by higher education.
AI PhD Researcher Munster Technological University
I am a PhD Researcher at Munster Technological University, researching how small and medium-sized businesses adopt Artificial Intelligence with a particular focus on the human, strategic and organisational dynamics involved. My work looks beyond the technical layer, exploring how AI can be introduced in practical, low-friction ways that support real business outcomes.
A recent report highlights the critical need for increased AI literacy across higher education institutions. As technology rapidly advances, universities face an urgent challenge to equip students with the essential knowledge and digital skills required for an AI-driven future. Image (and typos) generated by Nano Banana.
Source
Research Professional News
Summary
A new report from the Higher Education Policy Institute warns that British universities must urgently improve AI literacy among both staff and students to stay relevant and equitable in an era of rapid digital transformation. Co-authored by Professor Wendy Hall and Giles Carden of the University of Southampton, the report argues that universities can no longer afford to simply “acknowledge AI’s presence” and must adopt structured strategies for skills development, teaching innovation, and research support. It highlights growing digital divides across gender, income, and subject disciplines. Contributions include a chapter written by ChatGPT itself, advocating AI training within doctoral and staff development programmes, and cautioning against uneven capability across institutions. The report also predicts that AI adoption could lead to job reductions in professional services as universities seek financial efficiencies.
Key Points
The Higher Education Policy Institute calls for systemic AI literacy across the UK university sector.
Experts stress active engagement and structured upskilling, not passive awareness.
Digital divides linked to gender, wealth, and discipline risk deepening inequality.
ChatGPT’s own chapter recommends integrating AI training into research and doctoral curricula.
Financial pressures may drive automation and staff cuts in professional services.
Higher Education Policy Institute (HEPI), October 2025
Summary
This collection of essays explores how artificial intelligence—particularly generative AI (GenAI)—is reshaping the university sector across teaching, research, and administration. Contributors, including Dame Wendy Hall, Vinton Cerf, Rose Luckin, and others, argue that AI represents a profound structural shift rather than a passing technological wave. The report emphasises that universities must respond strategically, ethically, and holistically: developing AI literacy among staff and students, redesigning assessment, and embedding responsible innovation into governance and institutional strategy.
AI is portrayed as both a disruptive and creative force. It automates administrative processes, accelerates research, and transforms strategy-making, while simultaneously challenging ideas of authorship, assessment, and academic integrity. Luckin and others call for universities to foster uniquely human capacities—critical thinking, creativity, emotional intelligence, and metacognition—so that AI augments rather than replaces human intellect. Across the essays, there is strong consensus that AI literacy, ethical governance, and institutional agility are vital if universities are to remain credible and relevant in the AI era.
Key Points
AI literacy is now essential for all staff and students.
GenAI challenges traditional assessment and integrity systems.
Universities must act quickly but ethically in AI integration.
Professional services can achieve major efficiency gains through AI.
AI enables real-time strategy analysis and forecasting.
AI literacy must extend to leadership and governance structures.
Human intelligence—creativity, criticality, empathy—remains central.
Ethical frameworks and transparency are essential for trust.
Data maturity and infrastructure underpin successful adoption.
Collaboration across disciplines and sectors will shape sustainable change.
Conclusion
The report concludes that AI will redefine the university’s purpose, requiring institutions to shift from reactive adaptation to active leadership in shaping the AI future. The challenge is not simply to use AI but to ensure it strengthens human intelligence, academic integrity, and social purpose in higher education.
