Data AnalysisAugments Human LaborVerified
Reviewed and published by trentmaziarz, March 23, 2026. Discovered and drafted by our automated research pipeline.
OverDrive announced a deep-learning platform called Readtelligence in 2021 that would analyze every ebook in its catalog to generate detailed descriptions, themes, emotional arcs, reading levels, and content flags. As of 2024, the tool has been used only in limited pilot scenarios and has not been widely released to libraries.
Details
Readtelligence uses deep learning — a technique where software learns patterns by processing large amounts of data — to perform full-text analysis of ebooks. Planned features include AI-generated summaries of narrative emotional arcs, extraction of themes, people, and locations, estimated reading times, Lexile score generation for titles that lack publisher-supplied scores, visual cover analysis, and full-text Boolean search across the catalog. CEO Steve Potash described the tool as providing "nutrition label"-style information for books. As of mid-2024, the platform had been used only in a small number of controlled scenarios with select partners. Library Journal reported that the current politically charged environment around book challenges may be one reason the tool has not been broadly deployed.
Products affected
OverDrive Marketplace
Sources & Evidence
News Article
Other practices by OverDrive, Inc.
OtherIn March 2026, OverDrive hired Marc DeBevoise as its new president. DeBevoise previously led AI-driven product development at a video technology company, and his appointment signals a continued strategic focus on expanding AI across OverDrive's products.OtherOverDrive filed a federal lawsuit against OpenAI in 2025, arguing that OpenAI's use of the name "Sora" for its AI video generator causes harmful confusion with OverDrive's Sora student reading app, which has served K-12 schools since 2018.OtherOverDrive published a formal policy in 2025 laying out how the company intends to use AI responsibly across its products. The policy covers privacy, environmental impact, intellectual property, and what uses of AI the company permits and prohibits.
Have evidence about OverDrive, Inc.'s AI practices? Submit a report.
Report a Sighting →