When algorithms meet antiquity

Ancient classics long confined to archives can now be brought together through algorithms, while bricks and tiles from the Qin Dynasty (221-206 BC) and Han Dynasty (206 BC-AD 220) can be digitally revived through codes. With the help of artificial intelligence, the secrets embedded in China's profound history are becoming traceable and accessible to people today.

ShanHai AI, a vertical-specific model specializing in history and museum studies, was recently released by SumHi, a digital platform providing access to thousands of artifacts from prestigious museums and the Department of History at Peking University, marking a significant integration of traditional Chinese culture and technology.

The model was trained on a high-quality corpus of more than 270 million words, systematically compiled by scholars at Peking University. The dataset includes ancient classics, archaeological reports, and academic essays, and is enriched by more than 1 million professional question-and-answer pairs.

"Our initial aspiration was not to feed the AI with historical materials, but to translate the thinking patterns of history studies — particularly its emphasis on evidence, analytical frameworks, and the practice of drawing cautious conclusions — into rules that the AI can comprehend and put into practice," says Hu Hong, a history professor at Peking University who joined the development of ShanHai AI.

The AI tool is designed to serve both professionals and the general public. For example, for researchers, it can overcome limitations of memory and academic perspective by identifying historical correlations across vast bodies of material. For creators of films, TV series, novels and games, it can work as a consultant, offering accurate historical background information.

"Generally speaking, ShanHai AI demonstrated good academic 'discipline' in testing — it didn't fake answers or answer with ambiguity. Instead, it tried to answer on the basis of reliable historical materials and academic consensus. We don't want to make a 'perfect' AI, but an intelligent history assistant system that is cautious, open and evolvable," says Zhang Fan, the primary academic consultant for ShanHai AI, who is also a history professor at Peking University.