Wikipedia at 25: Celebrating Human-Curated Knowledge in the AI Age

Wikipedia, the world's largest online encyclopedia, celebrates its 25th anniversary today, marking a quarter century of providing free, reliable, and human-curated knowledge to the global community. The Wikimedia Foundation, the nonprofit behind Wikipedia, launches a series of initiatives to commemorate this milestone and highlight the platform's enduring relevance in the age of artificial intelligence.

Wikipedia 25 Campaign Unveils New Docuseries and Time Capsule

The Wikimedia Foundation unveils a new video docuseries, offering an intimate look into the lives of volunteer editors from around the globe. These volunteers, who number nearly 250,000, are the backbone of Wikipedia, ensuring that the site remains a trusted source of information. The docuseries features eight dedicated contributors, each with their unique stories and motivations for maintaining the encyclopedia.

“Wikipedia is a digital wonder of the world, unlike anything else,” says Maryana Iskander, CEO of the Wikimedia Foundation. “It has overcome countless challenges and changes in its time, thanks to the people behind it and their unwavering commitment to sharing free, reliable knowledge with the world.”

Interactive Time Capsule and Future Quiz Engage Global Community

To further engage the global community, the foundation introduces a “25 Years of Wikipedia” time capsule. This interactive experience allows users to explore key moments in Wikipedia’s history, including founder Jimmy Wales’ reflections on the site’s early days. The time capsule also highlights Wikipedia’s role during major global events, such as the surge in traffic following Michael Jackson’s death in 2009.

Additionally, the foundation releases an interactive quiz, inviting users to discover which vision of Wikipedia’s future best represents them. These futures, imagined by a diverse group of contributors, offer a range of possibilities for the platform’s evolution.

Wikipedia’s Role in the AI Era

In the age of AI, Wikipedia’s human-curated content stands out as a critical resource. The platform’s 65 million articles, available in over 300 languages, are viewed nearly 15 billion times every month. Wikipedia’s data powers generative AI chatbots, search engines, and voice assistants, making it one of the highest-quality datasets used in training large language models.

Despite the rise of AI, the human element remains essential. As Iskander notes, “Even and especially in the age of AI, knowledge is human, and knowledge needs humans.” Wikipedia’s success over the past 25 years underscores the importance of a global, collaborative effort to maintain and expand access to free, reliable information.

References

• Wikipedia celebrates 25 years of knowledge at its best – Wikimedia Foundation