Semarang (10/23) – Last September, the Diponegoro University Library Science Student Association held LIBFEST 2023 (Library Festival), a program of national essay and video creation competitions for TikTok with the theme “Library Branding: Libfluencers Working in the Era of Society 5.0.” The essay competition was attended by a Diponegoro University Library Science student, Nazwa Silva Alkatrin, who won 1st place in the LIBFEST 2023 essay competition. In an essay entitled “Integrating the Use of AI Chatbots in Libraries: Improving Virtual Reference Services,” Nazwa proposed integrating the use of AI chatbots in libraries as an effort to improve virtual reference services.
In her essay, Nazwa explained that AI chatbots could be a solution to improve virtual reference services in libraries. AI chatbots can provide information and answer user questions quickly, accurately, and efficiently. Additionally, AI chatbots can also be personalized according to user needs. AI-driven conversational assistants can transform conventional reference services by providing interactive, real-time assistance to library users.
Nazwa believes that integrating AI chatbots in libraries can provide several benefits, including:
- Increase user satisfaction with virtual reference services
- Facilitate user access to library information and services
- Increase the work efficiency of library staff
- Allow interaction between users and librarians and users with AI databases.
It is hoped that the results of this research can be an inspiration for libraries in Indonesia to integrate AI chatbots into their virtual reference services. With proper planning and execution, AI chatbot integration can be an effective solution for improving virtual reference services in libraries.
