Article

AMPlifying Digital Assets: The Journey of the Audiovisual Metadata Platform

By: Chris Lacinak
July 11, 2024

The digital landscape has transformed dramatically in the last decade. AI has reemerged as a powerful tool for asset description. This evolution has enabled previously hidden assets to be discovered and utilized. However, AI tools have often operated in isolation, limiting their full potential. This blog discusses the Audiovisual Metadata Platform (AMP) at Indiana University, a groundbreaking project creating meaningful metadata for digital assets.

Context and Genesis of AMP

Many organizations are digitizing their audiovisual collections. This highlighted the need for a unified platform. Indiana University, with Mellon Foundation funding, initiated the AMP project. Their goal was to help describe over 500,000 hours of audiovisual content and support other organizations facing similar challenges.

The Need for Metadata

Digitization efforts produce petabytes of digital files. Effective metadata is essential to make these collections accessible. AMP addresses this need by integrating AI tools and human expertise for efficient metadata generation.

The Role of AI in Metadata Creation

AI helps automate metadata generation, but integrating various AI tools into one workflow has been challenging. AMP was designed to combine these tools, incorporating human input for more accurate results.

Building Custom Workflows

AMP allows collection managers to build workflows combining automation and human review. This flexibility suits different types of collections, such as music, oral histories, or ethnographic content. Managers can tailor workflows to their collection’s needs.

The User Experience with AMP

Collection managers are the main users of AMP. They often face complex workflows. AMP simplifies this with an intuitive interface, making it easier to manage audiovisual collections.

Integrating Human Input

Human input remains essential in AI-driven workflows. AMP ensures that human expertise refines the metadata generated by AI tools, preventing AI from replacing traditional cataloging roles.

Ethical Considerations in AI

Ethical considerations are crucial in AI projects. AMP addresses issues like privacy and bias, ensuring responsible AI implementation in cultural heritage contexts.

Privacy Concerns

Archival collections often contain sensitive materials. AMP has privacy measures, especially for AI tools used in facial recognition. Collection managers control these tools, ensuring ethical responsibility.

Collaboration and Community Engagement

AMP is designed to be a collaborative platform. It aims to engage with institutions, sharing tools and insights for audiovisual metadata generation.

Partnerships and Testing

AMP has partnered with various institutions to test its functionalities. These collaborations provided valuable feedback, refining the platform to meet diverse user needs.

Future Directions for AMP

AMP’s journey continues as technology evolves. New AI tools like Whisper for speech-to-text transcription are being integrated.

Expanding Capabilities

AMP aims to enhance its metadata generation process with more functionalities. It seeks to improve existing workflows and incorporate advanced AI models for accuracy.

Conclusion

AMP represents a significant advancement in audiovisual metadata generation. By integrating AI and human expertise, it offers efficient management of digital assets. As it evolves, AMP will continue providing value to cultural heritage institutions.

Resources and Further Reading