The old-fashioned library at the heart of the AI boom

The library inside the San Francisco office of OpenAI, on April 4, 2024. Some OpenAI employees say they find inspiration among the books of the company’s two-story library. — The New York Times

SAN FRANCISCO: The two-story library has Oriental rugs, shaded lamps dotting its desks and rows of hardbacks lining its walls. It is the architectural centerpiece of the offices of OpenAI, the startup whose online chatbot, ChatGPT, showed the world that machines can instantly generate their own poetry and prose.

The building, which was once a mayonnaise factory, looks like a typical tech office, with its communal work spaces, well-stocked micro-kitchens and private nap rooms spread across three floors in San Francisco’s Mission District.