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Lookup NU author(s): Claire EastaughORCiD, Madeleine StillORCiD, Fiona BeyerORCiD, Sheila WallaceORCiD, Hannah O'KeefeORCiD
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0).
Introduction:Information retrieval is essential for evidence synthesis, but developing search strategies can be labour-intensive and time-consuming. Automating these processes would be of benefit and interest, though it is unclear if Information Specialists (IS) are willing to adopt artificial intelligence (AI) methodologies or how they currently use them. In January 2025, the NIHR Innovation Observatory and NIHR Methodology Incubator for Applied Health and Care Research co-sponsored the inaugural CORE Information Retrieval Forum, where attendees discussed AI's role in information retrieval.Methods:The CORE Information Retrieval Forum hosted a Knowledge Café. Participation was voluntary, and attendees could choose one of six event-themed discussion tables including AI. To support each discussion, a QR code linking to a virtual collaboration tool (Padlet; padlet.com) and a poster in the exhibition space were available throughout the day for attendee contributions.Results:The CORE Information Retrieval Forum was attended by 131 IS from nine different types of organisations, with most from the UK and ten countries represented overall. Among the six discussion points available in the Knowledge Café, the AI table was the most popular, receiving the highest number of contributions (n=49). Following the Forum, contributions to the AI topic were categorised into four themes: critical perception (n=21), current uses (n=19), specific tools (n=2), and training wants/needs (n=7).Conclusions:While there are critical perspectives on the integration of AI in the IS space, this is not due to a reluctance to adapt and adopt but from a need for structure, education, training, ethical guidance, and systems to support the responsible use and transparency of AI. There is interest in automating repetitive and time-consuming tasks, but attendees reported a lack of appropriate supporting tools. More work is required to identify the suitability of currently available tools and their potential to complement the work conducted by IS.
Author(s): Eastaugh CH, Still M, Beyer FR, Wallace SA, O'Keefe H
Publication type: Article
Publication status: Published
Journal: Cochrane Evidence Synthesis and Methods
Year: 2025
Volume: 3
Issue: 5
Print publication date: 07/09/2025
Online publication date: 07/09/2025
Acceptance date: 24/08/2025
Date deposited: 01/09/2025
ISSN (electronic): 2832-9023
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
URL: https://doi.org/10.1002/cesm.70049
DOI: 10.1002/cesm.70049
ePrints DOI: 10.57711/svzr-ty06
Data Access Statement: The data that support the findings of this study are available on request from the corresponding author. The data are not publicly available due to privacy or ethical restrictions.
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