AI and The Future of Holocaust Research & Memory

Abstract

How will the advent of AI impact the future of Holocaust studies? Will it provide new methods for analyzing data and displaying information for research and education that will benefit the field, or will the reduction of victim data to datasets and the problems of accuracy, distortion, and the stochasticity yet again strip people of their humanity? This paper arises from a May, 2025, workshop and public symposium at the University of Washington convened to address precisely these questions. Recognizing the intrinsically multidisciplinary nature of the issues and challenges before the field, the authors represent a range of expertise, including computer science, information science, history, sociology, anthropology, Jewish studies, museology, material culture, media and communication studies, literary studies, and art history. Over the course of two full days, we investigated the following themes: (1), AI and Holocaust Studies research, (2), AI and libraries, archives, and museums, (3) the limits of representation and reception, and (4) AI and computational sciences. The contributions included in this paper have been written by the participants and organizers in the months following the event. They include reflections, provocations, and refusals.