Published by: Andrew Wiegert, April 25th, 2025

Thomas Padilla writes in a new article in Inside Higher Ed: As AI technology evolves at breakneck speed, a hidden crisis is emerging: how do we preserve today’s AI for future generations? This thought-provoking article warns that while archivists and historians have long preserved books, data, and even websites, AI systems—constantly updating and operating in black-box environments—risk being lost to time. Without urgent action, future scholars could face a profound gap in understanding how AI shaped society. It’s a powerful call to rethink digital preservation strategies now, before history disappears behind proprietary algorithms and vanishing code.

Full Article:

https://www.insidehighered.com/opinion/views/2025/04/04/ai-preservation-unaddressed-challenge-opinion