UNESCO and the International Council of Museums have released the first global survey on how museums are using artificial intelligence. The findings were presented on September 17 at the Global Forum on the Ethics of Artificial Intelligence in Riyadh.
The survey collected responses from more than 400 museums across 90 countries. It is described as the first study of its kind to look at AI adoption across the global museum sector.
According to the results, 57% of responding museums report using AI in some form. That means more than half of the museums surveyed have already brought the technology into their daily work.
At the same time, 55% of those museums said they have no internal AI policy, strategy, or guidelines. This means many institutions are using the technology without formal rules in place to guide its use.
How Museums Are Using AI
The survey found that AI is being applied across a wide range of museum functions. These include administration, translation, and collections research.
AI is also being used for documentation and exhibition development. Visitor engagement is another area where museums report using the technology.
Despite this wide use, the survey notes that AI adoption is mostly exploratory. In many cases, it is being led by individual staff members rather than being adopted as an institution-wide practice.
Access to AI tools is not equal across the sector. The survey points to gaps in digital infrastructure, funding, and technical capacity between museums in different regions.
These gaps mean that museums in wealthier or better-resourced areas may have more chances to explore AI tools. Museums facing economic or digital inequalities have fewer opportunities to do the same.
Concerns Around Ethics and Data
Museums that responded to the survey raised several concerns about using AI. Accuracy of AI-generated content was one of the top issues raised.
Copyright was another concern flagged by museums. Data protection also ranked high on the list of worries tied to AI use.
Museums also said they need more training and guidance. This includes both technical and ethical guidance on how to use AI responsibly.
Guidance on data governance and intellectual property rights was also requested. Survey respondents said this kind of support would help them make better decisions about AI use going forward.
Nayef Al-Fayez, UNESCO's Assistant Director-General for Culture, said the results show the museum sector is at an important stage. He noted that experimentation with AI is moving faster than the policies needed to guide it.
Medea S. Ekner, Director General of ICOM, said the findings give a clearer picture of how museums are approaching AI. She added that ICOM's newly revised Code of Ethics now directly addresses digital technologies.
The report is based on the 2026 survey and will feed into UNESCO's future policy work. This includes guidance tied to UNESCO's 2015 recommendation on museums and its 2021 recommendation on the ethics of artificial intelligence.
The findings are also expected to shape ICOM's Code of Ethics for museum professionals going forward. UNESCO said the outcomes of the survey will guide its capacity-building programs for museums worldwide.
The report was published as part of ongoing work between UNESCO and ICOM. It marks the first time data on AI use in museums has been collected on this scale.
