Experts advocate for deep, mindful reading in AI age

The experience of deep, mindful reading remains irreplaceable, even in an era where AI tools can provide book summaries seemingly allowing individuals to grasp a book's content in minutes, experts and scholars said during a dialogue in Shanghai on Tuesday.

The dialogue was held as part of the opening ceremony of Fudan University's 14th reading festival. 

"Reading is a dialogue with the author. Each person brings their own experiences, emotions and biases to engage with the author's thoughts and expressions, leading to clashes and struggles that cannot be substituted by time-saving methods, such as AI-generated book summaries or brief book reviews by online content providers," said Huang Xuanjing, a professor at Fudan University's College of Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence. 

Chen Yinchi, director of the Fudan University library, noted that while 70 percent of the library's collection now comprises e-books, he still believes that good books deserve to be read slowly and thoroughly. 

Echoing this statement, Lin Zaiyong, Party secretary of Shanghai Normal University, stated that the AI era calls for deeper and broader reading. "While AI excels at retrieval and replication, it cannot match human creativity that combines life experiences and inspirations," he said. 

The reading festival will feature a series of lectures by renowned authors, themed book reviews, and specialized reading groups.