Librarians Host Workshops Teaching How to Avoid AI Features on Tech Platforms
Public librarians across the U.S., including Charlie Bailey in Philadelphia and Hannah Cyrus in Maine, are hosting workshops titled 'Avoiding AI' to help people disable artificial intelligence features on major tech platforms like Apple Intelligence and Gemini. These sessions aim to increase digital literacy by explaining how consumer AI tools work and offering step-by-step guidance for turning them off. The growing interest in these workshops reflects public frustration with the increasing presence of AI in daily life, particularly when it feels intrusive or forced upon users without consent. Attendees are often seeking control over their technology use, especially as AI features become more pervasive across devices and services. The popularity of Cyrus' first workshop led to a waitlist and virtual attendance via Zoom. Bailey's session at the South Philadelphia library gained significant traction online—his Instagram post received 2,000 likes and hundreds of shares—and he had to schedule additional sessions due to high demand.
Topics: Artificial Intelligence Consumer Technology Digital Privacy Libraries