As you may have noticed, library vendors have begun introducing new tools on their platforms — tools that are “powered by AI.” Scopus AI and Lexis+AI are a couple of examples. Often these tools promise to perform functions such as summarizing information from publications, or “supporting” users in similar ways.
Because several of these tools have been announced in short succession, and because we know that vendors often advertise directly to library staff, instructors, and sometimes even students, the CSU team has crafted a position statement explaining our general position on these add-ons.
Please note, this position statement is for internal UAL use only — it is not a public announcement. The focus of the statement is CSU’s approach to these AI add-on tools, which are being promoted to the Library by vendors and which often carry considerable additional expense. This is not a statement speaking for UAL as a whole. We’re sharing our position now, in case you may find it helpful if you receive questions about these tools. The statement has been reviewed by LTS.
We’ve also started tracking our decisions around these tools. You can view our tracker here: CSU discussion tracking spreadsheet. We add to this spreadsheet when we discuss and make a decision around one of these tools.