Interactive Heritage: The Role of Artificial Intelligence in Digital Museums

Museum use of artificial intelligence (AI) is becoming increasingly common, but its contribution to museum attendance is yet to be confirmed. This paper investigates whether the adoption of AI impacts museum visitation using data from 19 museums. Statistical analyses, including ANOVA and Spearman correlation, were conducted to determine if the use of AI has significant effects on visitors. The findings indicate no statistically significant difference between museums that use AI and those that do not (ANOVA: p = 0.263, F = 1.34), but the Spearman correlation (r = 0.448, p = 0.055) indicates a moderate positive correlation that is not statistically significant. The findings suggest that AI enhances visitor experience rather than increasing attendance. Additionally, this study proposes a conceptual framework for AI prototyping in museums. The study contributes to the ongoing debate on AI in cultural institutions by emphasizing that future research should incorporate longitudinal studies and qualitative visitor feedback in order to capture the overall impact of AI on engagement and sustainability in museums.