Introducing myself: Colin Greenstreet, research public historian
A user's perspective on generative ai for historical research and archival practice
Generative Lives is a Substack providing my user’s perspective on generative ai applied to historical research and archival practice. In this, my first post, I want to tell you a little about myself, and my interest in history, archives, and generative-ai.
I am a research public historian, and have been active as such on a number of projects over the last thirteen years:
* MarineLives [2012 -]
* Maphackathon [2017]
* Textiles, garments and dyes collaborative glossary [2017-2018]
* Signs of Literacy in Manuscripts [2018 -]
* Viae Regiae [2021-2022]
* Ai + History [2024 -]
Prior to my work as an historian, I had a career in business as a banker, management consultant, healthcare executive, and entrepreneur. I continue to be active as an entrepreneur, but concentrate on non-profit activities, such as the co-founding of a mental health charity in the US three years ago to support the mental health needs of Ukrainian veterans and their families [Heal Ukraine Trauma].
You can see material relating to Marinelives, Maphackathon, Signs of Literacy in Manuscripts, and AI + History in various of my Github repositories
* https://github.com/Addaci/HCA
* https://github.com/Maphackathon
I have added a new Github repository to support the Generative Lives substack
I have been interested in generative-ai since early 2023, when I investigated its potential to support the mental health initiative I co-founded. In early 2024 I switched my attention to the application of generative-ai techniques to historical and archival research, and was invited in July 2024 by John Sheridan, Technical Director of the National Archives (TNA), Kew to give a users perspective at an internal all-hands TNA meeting, as the TNA began to think seriously about the implications of Large Language Models for itself and the other archives it supports and advises. Then in November 2024, I expanded and extended my talk, and spoke at an Institute of Historical Research Digital History seminar about the application of generative-ai to historical research. There is a YouTube recording of this IHR talk here, and a copy of the slides here. Shortly afterwards, I ran a one month ai-collaboratory for doctoral and postdoctoral students to get our hands dirty with the new tools.
This year I have been focussed on completing the first draft of my book “Paper Ships”, which pulls together seven years of work on literacy and communication in the C17th marine and commercial world, and on moving to Brighton in East Sussex. But, I am now returning to my interest in generative-ai and historical and archival research and will be using this Substack to contribute a user’s perspective as an active user and developer of ai-tools in this domain.
I am relaunching the ai + history collaboratory. I last ran the collaboratory for four sessions in December 2024. The collaboratory is for all research historians interested in the application of geneative ai to historical research. It will be hands on and will builds tools by and for for its members. We intend to walk the talk.
You can find the link to our GitHub repository, with a Discussion Board and Wiki here: https://github.com/Addaci/ai-and-history-collaboratory
We will be meeting monthly online by ZOOM and we will maintain a new ai-and-history-collaboratory GitHub repository for asynchronous communication between sessions.
Depending on how our collaboratory develops, we may identify potential collective collaboratory projects, or simply share projects of individual members of the collaboratory. The repository has both a wiki and a discussion board.
The topic of our first online session on Tuesday, December 9th 2025 will be the conceptualisation, design and development of a Socratic research tool powered by Gemini (https://github.com/Addaci/Generative-Lives-Research-App/wiki), and its potential application within historical research.
Confirmed participants [alphabetical]
Gavin Beinart-Smollan | Maurice Brenner | David Brown | Abi Cunningham | Marc Eagle | Jacob Forward | Colin Greenstreet (convenor) | Thiago Krause | Oren Okhovat | Mark L. Thompson |
Our participants are members of, or associated with, a wide range of universities in the US, UK, and continental Europe, including University of Cambridge, University of East Anglia, University of Groningen, New York University, Trinity College Dublin, Wayne State University, Western Kentucky University, Yale University, University of York.