LocationsA Solution from Serbia for Preserving Cultural Heritage, Language, and Identity in the Age of Artificial Intelligence (AI)
LORYA Launched – AI Tool for Supporting the Digitization of Written Cultural Heritage
April 1, 2026
Belgrade, 1 April 2026 – United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), in partnership with the Mathematical Institute of the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts (MI SANU) and the National Library of Serbia, and with the support of the Governments of France and Japan, has developed a tool to support the digitization and preservation of written cultural heritage – LORYA (Lorya). This platform, presented today in Belgrade, was created with the aim of enabling the inclusion of textual content from underrepresented languages in the development of artificial intelligence models.
“France is proud to support the launch of Lorya in cooperation with UNDP and the Government of Japan through the Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs, as we believe linguistic diversity is essential for inclusive and accessible artificial intelligence. Multilingualism is the best way to reduce the digital divide between countries, counter disinformation, and effectively promote human rights in the digital age. Here in Serbia, Lorya demonstrates that technology can be a powerful tool for protecting cultural heritage, and we hope this success will inspire other countries as well”, said Natacha Ephimoff, Deputy Head of Mission at the Embassy of France to Serbia.
“We live in a time of rapid development of artificial intelligence, which is already shaping the way we learn, research, and make decisions. At the same time, this progress raises important questions about the reliability, context, and quality of the data on which these systems rely. This is precisely why initiatives like Lorya are of exceptional importance. Japan is pleased to support initiatives that connect technology and culture and looks forward to continued cooperation in this field”, stated Saito Atsushi, Deputy Head of Mission at the Embassy of Japan to Serbia.
LORYA is a digital tool that facilitates data processing by converting written cultural heritage from digitized printed sources into clean, machine‑readable text that can be used to train artificial intelligence language models in local languages. In doing so, information from culturally and historically significant sources - such as books, magazines, newspapers, and manuscripts - becomes more accessible to researchers, historians, students, as well as the broader public for learning, research, and the development of new AI‑based products and services.
“Together with partners from leading scientific and cultural institutions in Serbia, we have developed a tool that enables written heritage to become visible and recognizable in the era of artificial intelligence. Preserving language and cultural identity is essential for developing more inclusive AI systems. We are proud that a solution created here in Serbia will help communities around the world protect their heritage and integrate it into global AI knowledge”, said Yakup Beris, UNDP Serbia Resident Representative.
Lorya is designed to simplify the processing of documents that pose challenges for traditional optical character recognition (OCR) tools: documents containing multiple scripts, handwritten texts, or non‑standard text layouts. The platform will be released under an open‑source license and formally registered as a Digital Public Good, making it accessible for use and adaptation worldwide. UNDP teams from Iraq and Nepal have already expressed interest in tailoring the platform to their local contexts, further confirming the importance of the solution developed in Serbia.
Following the presentation, a panel discussion titled “Preserving Language and Cultural Heritage in the Age of Artificial Intelligence” was held. The panel featured Ms. Barbora Bromová, Data and AI Project Analyst at the UNDP Digital AI & Innovation Hub, Ms. Anđelka Zečević, NLP Researcher at the Mathematical Institute of the SANU, and Ms. Tamara Butigan Vučaj, Head of the Digital Library Development and Microfilming Department at the National Library of Serbia.
