Library faces AI-related technical issues

The Bibliothèque nationale de France (BnF) is encountering technical problems with its Gallica digital library, a free and open-access platform offering a vast collection of books, manuscripts, and other materials. These issues are primarily attributed to increased activity from artificial intelligence (AI) robots that are automatically extracting content from the site.

AI robots overload the library’s servers

According to the BnF, AI robots are scraping content from Gallica at a high rate, leading to server saturation. This overuse causes slow page loading and frequent error messages, such as "too many requests," making it difficult for users to access the library’s resources.

BnF informs users of ongoing efforts

On October 28, the BnF announced through social media platforms X and Bluesky that it is working on corrective measures to address the issue. The library has not yet provided specific details about the solutions being implemented, but it has assured users that it is actively working to resolve the problem.

Users note long-standing but worsening issue

Some users have indicated that the problem has been present for years but has recently worsened. While the situation is concerning, a user noted that other libraries experiencing similar challenges remain accessible to the public, suggesting that the BnF’s issue is not unique.

Broader implications for online content

The situation highlights a larger issue: most internet traffic is generated by automated systems, including AI robots. Companies like Google are known to extract content from websites to train their AI models, which can potentially undermine the original sources by diverting traffic and resources away from them.