It seems that every new technology has given rise to predictions that libraries will soon fade into irrelevance. And yet with every new wave of technology, libraries adapted, expanded, and deepened their role in scholarship and lifelong learning.

Today, as artificial intelligence (AI) aspires to reshape many aspects of daily life, including research and education, the same question is being asked: Will libraries survive?

The answer is not only yes, but that libraries are more important than ever. Far from becoming obsolete, libraries are essential to guiding society and its citizens through this transformation, ensuring that AI is used ethically, equitably, and in ways that advance and preserve knowledge and social well-being.

Libraries are not strangers to disruption. They have led the way in digitizing collections, building online catalogs, and pioneering open access. They are institutions uniquely responsible for stewarding the past, supporting the present, and preparing for the future of scholarship. Libraries are critical drivers of digital transformation across society.

At the dawn of the internet—which itself came from the scientific and research community—libraries were there to develop technical standards for information exchange, train users on finding and evaluating information in this new environment, and develop infrastructure for new forms of online scholarly communication. (Even before the internet, librarians were the first profession to make their back-office databases accessible to the public through the online public access catalog.)

AI represents the next frontier in this long history of innovation. Generative AI can help researchers discover new insights, accelerate data analysis, and expand access to knowledge. For students and communities, it can create new educational opportunities. But as with any powerful tool, AI also raises profound challenges—and this is where libraries’ role becomes indispensable.

On one hand, generative AI has the potential to democratize access to knowledge, personalize learning, and accelerate discovery. On the other hand, it raises urgent questions about equity of access, the integrity of information, and the preservation of intellectual freedom.

Libraries sit at the heart of these debates. They are trusted institutions capable of weighing innovation against risks and ensuring that the pursuit of technological progress does not compromise the integrity of knowledge.

In an era where misinformation can spread at an unprecedented scale, libraries are anchors of credibility and integrity in the knowledge ecosystem.

The Association of Research Libraries (ARL) has already taken concrete steps to shape the integration of AI into scholarship and society. Through our work with the Library Copyright Alliance, ARL was early in developing a set of principles for copyright and artificial intelligence, shared with both the U.S. Copyright Office and the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy.

These principles highlight a critical distinction: the difference between what AI models ingest during training and the outputs they generate. Training AI relies on robust fair use protections in U.S. copyright law. Copyright law already offers tools to address infringing outputs. This balanced approach enables innovation while safeguarding the rights of creators.

Beyond copyright, ARL has published a broader set of guiding principles on generative AI. These emphasize responsible development, ethical transparency, and the importance of building trust among stakeholders.

In addition to providing guidance on AI, libraries are also looking ahead and planning for an AI-influenced future. ARL, in partnership with the Coalition for Networked Information, recently developed a set of scenarios envisioning the plausible impact of AI on the knowledge ecosystem in 2035.

Scenario planning does not predict the future but prepares us to navigate uncertainty. We’ve been developing tools and holding workshops for library leaders to use these scenarios to prioritize opportunities, from strengthening information equity to building resilience against disinformation.

All of this to say libraries are not taking a wait-and-see approach to this revolutionary technology. They’re actively engaged in shaping and planning for how it will impact society, both positively and potentially negatively.

At a time when higher education, research institutions, libraries, and knowledge itself feel under constant attack, it’s important to remember that investing in libraries has always paid dividends. Libraries play a critical role in preserving cultural heritage, fostering community resilience, and supporting both cutting-edge research and shepherding the adoption of new technologies. In an AI-driven world, these roles become increasingly critical.

The future of knowledge cannot be left to data centers and large language models alone; it requires institutions committed to trust, stewardship, and equity—values that libraries embody. Libraries ensure that AI strengthens rather than destabilizes the foundations of scholarship.

Andrew K. Pace is the executive director of the Association of Research Libraries.