As part of the Readtelligence platform, OverDrive developed AI tools that automatically scan the full text of ebooks and assign scores for attributes like explicit content. The tools were designed to help librarians make age-appropriateness decisions. They were announced in 2021 but have not been widely released.

The Content Awareness component of Readtelligence uses deep learning to scan full ebook text and generate content scores — numerical ratings for attributes such as explicit material — intended to help school and public librarians make informed collection decisions. When the tool was announced at Digipalooza in 2021, it drew immediate criticism from librarians who warned it could be used to automate content filtering or enable politically motivated book challenges, particularly against LGBTQIA+ titles. Library Journal noted in 2024 that the ongoing book challenge environment may explain why OverDrive has not deployed these tools broadly. The political tensions the tool intersects with were illustrated in early 2025, when a Missouri state official paused funding for OverDrive's Sora app over allegations of explicit content in the student catalog.