AI Speech-to-Text in Practice: Lessons for Library Workflows, Testing, and Evaluation

Recorded on 08/25/2026

Posted in Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Accessibility (DEIA), Library Technology and IT

Learn how to evaluate, implement, and sustain AI speech-to-text services within library environments.

Access the presentation slides.

Summary:

As academic libraries expand their digital collections and accessibility commitments, AI-powered speech-to-text tools are emerging as a critical component of modern workflows. This webinar explores the practical applications, opportunities, and challenges of implementing these tools, drawing on real-world insights from the Ontario Council of University Libraries (OCUL) Audio-to-Text (Whisper) Project and recent evaluations of speech-to-text technologies.

Participants will learn how speech-to-text models can support accessibility, discovery, and preservation by generating transcripts and a range of caption formats for lectures, oral histories, and audiovisual collections, while enabling text-based search and research workflows.

The session will also share key findings from the OCUL project, including the demonstrated potential of Whisper to significantly reduce transcription time—from days to hours—while delivering high-quality outputs that outperform many existing tools. However, we will also address important limitations, such as multilingual accuracy gaps, lack of speaker identification, and the continued need for human-in-the-loop remediation.

Attendees will leave with a clearer understanding of how to evaluate, implement, and sustain AI speech-to-text services within library environments, along with practical considerations for infrastructure, workflows, and future development.

Explore OCUL’s AI Tools for Academic Libraries, a bimonthly series from OCUL and Choice’s LibTech Insights that explores specific categories of AI tools through concise, practical evaluations. 

Speakers:

  • Image of Meghan Xu

    Meghan Xu

    Programmer/Analyst, DevOps, Scholars PortalOntario Council of University Libraries (OCUL)

    Meghan Xu is a Programmer/Analyst, DevOps at Scholars Portal, the service arm of the Ontario Council of University Libraries. She is responsible for supporting the infrastructure and operations of Scholars Portal technical services, including OLRC and related platforms, covering day-to-day operational support, environment and release management, monitoring and alerting configuration, automated testing and more.

  • Image of Rachel Wang

    Rachel Wang

    Systems Administrator, DevOps, Scholars PortalOntario Council of University Libraries (OCUL)

    Rachel Wang is a Systems Administrator, DevOps at Scholars Portal, the service arm of the Ontario Council of University Libraries. She is responsible for supporting the infrastructure needs of Scholars Portal technical services including Scholaris, the national shared institutional repository service.

    Profile image generated with https://getavataaars.com/ under an MIT License.

  • Image of Gabby Crowley

    Gabby Crowley

    Client Services Librarian, Scholars PortalOntario Council of University Libraries (OCUL)

    Gabby Crowley is the Client Services Librarian at Scholars Portal, the service arm of the Ontario Council of University Libraries. She is responsible for consortial information sharing about Scholars Portal services through library communications, documentation, research support, training webinars, and more. She has a Bachelor of Arts in English and Creative Writing from Concordia University and a Master of Information from the University of Toronto, with concentrations in Library & Information Science and Archives & Records Management.

    Photo by Bart Kawula.

  • Image of Harpinder Singh

    Harpinder Singh

    Associate Director, Systems and Technical Operations, Scholars PortalUniversity of Toronto

    Harpinder Singh is the Associate Director, Systems and Technical Operations at Scholars Portal, where over fifteen years he has gone from building the infrastructure behind OCUL’s shared services to leading the team that runs it. His work now reaches into the AI and machine learning space as well, supporting the infrastructure that lets the consortium host and experiment with AIML tools centrally as part of OCUL’s AIML Initiative.

  • Image of Kari D. Weaver

    Kari D. Weaver

    Program Manager, Artificial Intelligence and Machine LearningOntario Council of University Libraries (OCUL)

    Dr. Kari D. Weaver (she/her) is the Program Manager, Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning, at the Ontario Council of University Libraries and the Learning, Teaching, and Instructional Design Librarian, University of Waterloo Libraries. She holds a BA from Indiana University, MLIS from the University of Rhode Island, an EdD in Curriculum & Instruction from the University of South Carolina. Her research centers on the intersection of human information behaviour and pedagogy and covers a wide range of topics including information literacy, academic integrity, misinformation, educational research methods, online learning and digital accessibility.

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This webinar will be recorded. All registrants should receive a follow-up email with a link to the recording. Webinar recordings are also available on Choice’s YouTube channel.

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This webinar is part of Choice’s LibTech Insights (LTI) content vertical, which examines the day-to-day impact of library and education technology on academic librarians, faculty, researchers, administrators, and students. 

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