University Library unveils generative AI tool customized for Tar Heels

Carolina students, faculty and staff now have a free, artificial intelligence-powered resource to help them in their research, homework and daily lives.

On Jan. 29, the University Library hosted a grand opening for the Library AI Studio in Davis Library and introduced PromptLab, a free platform designed for the Carolina community to access and explore top generative AI models like ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude and more.

PromptLab provides a secure environment for users to create custom agents and test models side by side. They can access agents designed by the University Library team to help tackle a variety of tasks from fine-tuning resumes to summarizing course materials.

While customization options and an exclusive selection of agents to meet the specific needs of students and faculty are obvious benefits, GenAI program coordinator Naa Norley Vanderpuye-Orgle also notes that PromptLab data is never used to train AI models, and all chats and information remain completely private to the user.

“Data privacy is a key value and of the highest importance in the Library,” she said.

Over the past few months, the University Library’s four AI fellows have been helping staff fine-tune the platform before making it available for broader use.

“I think the biggest advantage I found was how specialized it was,” said AI fellow Lilla Megyeri, a first-year student from Hungary. “I interact with a lot of the models and they’re more generalized, but with PromptLab, I can be more precise about what I want.”

Megyeri, not a native English speaker, said PromptLab’s agent-building tool has been helpful in creating a grammar and spelling checker for assignments without rewriting entire essays, as other models might do.

“It keeps my style, my tone and my original writing. I really appreciate that,” she said.

(Jon Gardiner/UNC-Chapel Hill)

‘A holistic learning experience’

While the Library AI Studio opened last summer with support from the Office of the Provost’s AI Acceleration Program, the grand opening offered the first opportunity for the Carolina community to learn more about the PromptLab tool and the range of on-site services and programming available for both AI skeptics and enthusiasts alike.

“Librarians offer guidance and expertise without barriers or judgment, and that makes Davis Library the right home for an AI studio here at Carolina,” María R. Estorino, vice provost for University Libraries and University librarian, said at the event. “This studio is for you, especially for students who are encountering AI at a time when it will impact both how you learn and how you work as you launch your new careers. This is a space to experiment, to create and to explore generative AI responsibly with support and with trusted guidance.”

“Our responsibility as a University is to help our community to engage with AI thoughtfully, critically and with care,” added Jeffrey Bardzell, vice provost for artificial intelligence and chief AI officer. “The Library AI Studio exists to do exactly that. This space is designed for curiosity and experimentation, for critical interrogation and invention. Because using AI goes well beyond learning what it can do — it demands that we think deeply about when we use it, how it affects people and what responsible use looks like.”

Anyone with an ONYEN can access PromptLab from their personal computers, but Michelle Rodell, associate University librarian for health sciences and health sciences library director, says the idea is to bring people with different viewpoints together to have conversations.

“We’re approaching this as a holistic learning experience,” she said. “What we’re offering is more than a technology platform — we’re offering a service.”

In addition to computers, consultation services and having graduate student staff on site, the University Library has held instructional sessions — like how students can use AI for prepare for exams — and plans to offer ongoing programming including panels with faculty members and students.

“We don’t have a higher strategic priority than artificial intelligence,” said Chancellor Lee H. Roberts. “The Library AI Studio represents the opportunity to help members of our community, especially our students, learn as much about the technology as they can by working with it and to develop ideas that grow from hands-on experience rather than top-down direction. We couldn’t be more excited about this opportunity here.”

As more students, faculty and staff continue to learn about PromptLab and how they want to engage with AI, Rodell hopes they take advantage of all the resources the Library AI Studio has to offer.

“Ethics and sustainability are really part of our core values when approaching this,” said Rodell. “We’re not here to tell you to use AI — we’re here to help you understand it.”

View more photos from the opening below and click to enlarge.