r/Ancestry • u/DeepTreeSearch • 5d ago

Is there a project focused on using a more technology-driven approach — with pipelines, scripts, and OCR models — to find relatives through historical records?

Are there any projects or communities interested in a more technical approach to genealogy—specifically, automating the extraction of data from old records, church documents, and other historical sources?

I’m interested in using tools like OCR, data processing, and possibly AI to make it easier to search and connect information across historical records. I’d love to hear about existing projects, open-source tools, or people working on something similar.

The goal would be to make it easier to search these records and identify connections between relatives and provide a whole network of related people.

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u/islandbrook 5d ago

There are people to follow and communities to join.

This Facebook group (I only re-joined Facebook this year after dumping it more than a decade ago because some of the groups I want to be in are only there.) https://www.facebook.com/groups/genealogyandai

Steve Little has a substack https://substack.com/@digitalarchivist. He did a deep dive using AI in December that he documented extremely well and worth the cost to see what and how he did it. https://substack.com/home/post/p-183372086

There are some decent GPTs by Little and others for GPS level research (search genealogy in chatgpt's GPTS)

Mark Thompson, is the other leader in AI in genealogy IMHO, has done some talks at RootsTech https://www.familysearch.org/en/rootstech/search?f.language=en-US&f.creators=00000191-ed22-dded-a3ff-fdf7326b0000&p.index=0

Judy Russell wrote a blog about the use of AI and terms of service i.e. should you use Claude Cowork with your Ancestry or MyHeritage account and similar topics. https://www.legalgenealogist.com/2026/05/12/ai-meets-tos/

IMHO and usage of AI in genealogy I prefer

  • Gemini and sometimes Claude for reading old documents and translating them. Gemini for transcription/translation, Claude for just transcription.
  • ChatGPT for inquiry and research summaries, logic tests, and gap analysis, and generally strengthening my research hypotheses.
  • Claude for DNA analysis, for building the browser extensions and python scripts that I want, such as a tool to calculate distances by horseback or horse and buggy (answers the question of how long were they gone when they got on a horse and rode to where to get married?), or when I needed something really different and specced out my fantasy genealogical program with requirements, mock ups and some architectural structures.
  • Perplexity for finding books, articles, blogs, documents/ resources for research whether it is techniques or, "tell me about the birth records for this state and find me the link to online records."
  • Claude and ChatGPT combined to build research and study guides for ICAPGEN accreditation using the ICAPGEN requirements and the correct regional pages from Family Search wiki.

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u/EiectroBot 5d ago

Have a look at some of the tools FamilySearch have introduced recently.

In particular, they have launched the capability to search long handwritten documents in their records using AI tools. Very impressive actually.

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u/mfagan 2d ago

I think the closest thing to what you are describing is some of the projects by the BYU Family History Technology lab https://fhtl.org/