For generations, artefacts and information of all kinds have been assembled in diverse collections across the UK. Museum objects, archives, pictures, moving images and media, records of historical places, and datasets derived from state, commercial, and individual activity, all have been catalogued and stored. Yet in most museums and galleries, only a tiny proportion of physical collections are shown in public displays, with vast stores kept in reserve for research. The knowledge held by these great repositories of cultural capital has been largely untapped – until now.

For nearly half a century, heritage organisations have created digital inventories of their collections. Inspired by the prospect of combining these records so they may be explored together, the Congruence Engine research project set out to build digital bridges and pathways between collections dedicated to the UK’s industrial history for textiles, energy, and communications. Launched in 2021, Congruence Engine navigated the generative AI revolution that commenced a year later. As a result, Emergent Histories is by turns a reflection on the historical and curatorial possibilities arising from collections, a digital history how-to manual, and a narrative of the tribulations of AI early adopters. It will be of interest to historians, curators, students – and to anyone who cares for the industrial aspects of our past.