The event brought together museum professionals from around the world to discuss museums' roles in fostering cultural exchange, sharing best practices, addressing contemporary challenges, and strengthening international and regional cooperation.
Aligned with the MONDIACULT 2022 Declaration, which emphasised the educational and social role of museums, the Forum promoted global dialogue on museums’ contributions to cultural heritage protection, social and economic development, and inclusive education.
A key focus of the Third UNESCO High-Level Forum for Museums was the integration of digital technologies in museum management to enhance collection protection and public engagement. Petra Havu, who is also the CEO of the Finnish Museums Association, was invited to share her and NEMO's expertise on digital and AI by moderating the panel 'Harnessing Digital Technologies and Artificial Intelligence'. She was joined on the stage by María Elena Espinoza (Deputy Director, Casa del Alabado Pre-Columbian Art Museum, Ecuador), Ore Disu (Director, Museum of West African Art, Nigeria), Gábor Zsigmond (Director-General, Hungarian National Museum, Hungary), Gehane Nabil (Director, Grand Egyptian Museum Learning Center, Egypt), and Britt Romstad (Executive Director, Audience and Engagement, Australian Centre for Moving Image, Australia).
NEMO's thoughts on AI
The panel explored how AI-powered solutions can enhance accessibility, cataloguing, security, collection management, and immersive experiences in museums, while addressing ethical considerations and promoting responsible technology integration. Havu opened the panel by outlining NEMO's recent work in the field and shared NEMO's perspective on AI in museums:
- NEMO notes key concerns regarding data privacy, bias and representation, as well as how AI might impact employment.
- At the same time, NEMO see opportunities with AI to enhance visitor engagement, make collections management more efficient, and used as innovative educational tools.
Reflecting on the event, Havu noted how AI enhances accessibility, visitor experiences, and heritage preservation while creating new opportunities for dialogue with audiences. She stressed the importance of ethical, inclusive, and globally conscious practices, underscoring the need for responsible AI integration in the cultural sector.
During the panel, Havu also referenced NEMO’s three recommendations for policy makers to support museums in the rapid development of AI:
- A political vision for museums and cultural heritage in an AI-driven society
Recognising the unique position of museums and cultural heritage as pillars of trust within society, it is imperative to integrate them into a regulatory framework. Artificial intelligence in museums needs to be addressed and shaped so that technological developments do not simply reshape museums from the outside. Collaborative efforts between governments, regulatory bodies, and museum professionals can ensure that museums play a pivotal role in the development of ethical practices related to emerging technologies. - Financial investments to apply AI successfully in the Public Cultural Domain
Financial resources must be allocated for infrastructure, equipment and highly qualified human resources, enhancing museums’ professional capacities.AI needs to source high-quality, interoperable data and properly described metadata. Copyright issues must be resolved. Museum professionals need adequate skills to perform these tasks, to keep pace with rapidly evolving AI capabilities and to address sector-specific concerns. Furthermore, standing commitments to support the cultural heritage sector should be expanded to ensure the quality and quantity of digitalisation required by Cultural Heritage Data Spaces and the European Collaborative Cultural Heritage Cloud. - Establishment of a European AI innovation hub for cultural heritage
To foster creativity, innovation and collaboration, to centralise expertise and knowledge and to face challenges for the sector associated with AI, there is a need for a dedicated competency centre in Europe. This space would serve as a hub to bring together expertise and practices, knowledge and resources in a network of and for professionals, ensuring digital innovation and development across the diverse European Cultural heritage sector - in alignment with the values of human-centred design, privacy, and open-source practices.
The recommendations were first presented on 20 March 2024 at the international conference ‘Innovation and Integrity: Museums paving the way in an AI-driven society’, where NEMO facilitated discussions with the sector and policy makers on the role, challenges and the potential of museums in an increasingly AI-driven society.
