Presented by: SirsiDynix and Library Journal
Event Date and Time: Wednesday, May 20, 2026 |  11:00 AM ET / 8:00 AM PT

Artificial intelligence (AI)–driven discovery products, including Google AI Overviews and ChatGPT, are changing how patrons find and interact with information online. For people seeking health information, climate change explanations, or context for current events, the appeal of a fast, confident-sounding summary can short-circuit critical evaluation, reduce source-checking, and accelerate the spread of plausible misinformation.

How do librarians respond when patrons arrive with AI-generated answers, partial citations, or information that is incomplete—or simply wrong? In this webcast, we will analyze current research on AI summaries and their impact on clicking and reading behaviors, including a recent Pew Research Center study finding that when an AI summary appears, users are almost half as likely to click on traditional search results and far less likely to visit the original sources cited.

We will also demystify how Large Language Models (LLMs) like ChatGPT are trained to predict and generate text, why these tools can “hallucinate,” and what that means for librarians on the front lines who are responsible for providing quality services and information. Participants will leave with practical approaches libraries can use to help patrons verify claims, recognize uncertainty, and re-anchor their information seeking in high-quality, transparent sources.

We’ll close by exploring how OA-forward discovery pathways—such as CloudSource OA, with more than 80M vetted open access and open educational resources—can supplement, and in some cases replace, AI-dominated search experiences by routing patrons to attributable materials with one click and no authentication barriers.

Speakers:

Maryska Connolly, MLIS, CloudSource Director of Partnerships & Communications, SirsiDynix

Rick Branham, Senior Vice President, Sales Support, Academic & Content Solutions, SirsiDynix

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