A team of business school professors at Santa Clara University has developed an AI tool, AI Provenance Research, to help identify unclaimed artworks looted by the Nazis. The project aims to make information from over 40,000 entries more accessible.
The database combines data from different archives and catalogues into one easily navigable platform. Professor Michael Santoro was inspired after his friend Timothy Reif recovered eleven artworks, raising hopes for the repatriation of Indigenous art too.
Currently, the system is glitchy; questions like 'How many pieces were shipped to Nazi leaders?' produce errors. However, it does return some data, such as a list of artists from the David Weill collection, though in an awkward format.
The next steps involve refining the tool's functionality and expanding its database with more sources. A paper will be published and a foundation established to hire experts for further research.
