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Jun 25, 2026

Heratio Help Center article. Category: AI & Automation.

Discoveries User Guide

Overview

Discoveries surfaces connections between records that span different collections - links that are easy to miss when material is spread across many fonds, series, and sectors. The system analyses catalogue descriptions and proposes relationships, such as the same person, place, organisation, or event appearing in records that were never formally cross-referenced. Each suggested connection carries a confidence indicator so you can judge how strong it is, and every suggestion is meant to be verified before you cite it. Open it at /discoveries.

What it does

Discoveries is an AI-assisted exploration tool that looks across the whole catalogue and proposes cross-collection connections:

  • It detects shared people, places, organisations, events, and themes that appear in records held in different parts of the collection.
  • It presents each connection as a suggestion - "these records may be related because..." - with the records involved and a short reason.
  • It assigns each suggestion a confidence level, reflecting how strongly the evidence supports the link.

The aim is to help curators and researchers notice relationships across silos that a single keyword search would not reveal, opening up new lines of enquiry.

How to use it

  1. Go to /discoveries (also reachable from the Explore hub at /explore).
  2. Browse the list of suggested connections. Each entry names the records involved and gives a short reason for the proposed link.
  3. Read the confidence indicator on each suggestion:
    • Higher confidence means the evidence for the link is strong and consistent.
    • Lower confidence means the link is more speculative and deserves closer scrutiny.
  4. Click through to the underlying records to read them in full and judge the connection for yourself.
  5. Use a confirmed connection to inform cataloguing, research notes, or further searches.

Good to know

  • Verify before citing. Discoveries are AI-generated suggestions, not established facts. Treat them as leads to investigate. Always open and read the source records before relying on a connection in research, a finding aid, or a publication.
  • Confidence is a guide, not a guarantee. A high-confidence suggestion is still a suggestion. Two records mentioning the same name, for example, may refer to different people who share that name.
  • Suggestions improve as catalogue descriptions become richer and more complete.
  • Discoveries respects access rules - records you are not permitted to see are not included in suggested connections.