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Richard Ovenden

I am the 25th Bodley's Librarian, leading the University of Oxford's system of research libraries. I am President of the Digital Preservation Coalition and active in the world of libraries, archives and information, and also active in historical research.

I was educated at Durham University and University College London, and have worked as a professional librarian since 1985. I have served on the staff of Durham University Library, the House of Lords Library, the National Library of Scotland (as Deputy Head of the Rare Books Section), the University of Edinburgh (as Director of Collections), and since 2003 at the Bodleian Libraries (first as Keeper of Special Collections, from 2011-2014 as Deputy Librarian, the Bodleian Libraries, then from 2014 as Bodley’s Librarian).

I sit on the Board of Research Libraries UK and of the Consortium of European Research Libraries, am a Trustee of the Krazsna Kraus Foundation, of Chawton House Library, and of the Victoria County History for Oxfordshire.

I have published widely on the history of collecting, the history of photography and on professional concerns of the library, archive, and information world, am a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries and was elected to the American Philosophical Society in 2015. Recently I headed Oxford’s involvement with the Google mass digitization project. I hold a Professorial Fellowship at Balliol College, Oxford.

Whether stored electronically or written on calf skin, knowledge has never been more threatened

Mar 08, 2016 23:57 pm UTC| Insights & Views

Information is constantly under attack. The current debate around the longstanding use of vellum (a parchment made using calf skin) for printing key legislative documents highlights the continued concern over this. Some...

Economy

German Exports Drop 2.3% in January, Exceeding Forecast Decline

Germanys export sector started 2024 on a weak note, with outbound shipments falling 2.3% in January compared to December, according to data released Tuesday by Destatis, the federal statistics office. The...

RBA Rate Decision: Deputy Governor Signals Genuine Debate Ahead of March Meeting

The Reserve Bank of Australia is heading into its March 17 board meeting with no clear consensus on interest rates, according to Deputy Governor Andrew Hauser. Speaking to The Conversation on Tuesday, Hauser acknowledged...

Dollar Stabilizes Amid Iran War Uncertainty as Oil Prices Remain Elevated

The U.S. dollar regained its footing against major currencies on Tuesday after pulling back from recent highs, following President Donald Trumps statement that the Iran conflict could conclude very soon. Despite the...

Iran-U.S. Oil Tensions Escalate as Revolutionary Guards Threaten Strait of Hormuz Blockade

Tensions between Iran and the United States have reached a dangerous new level after Irans Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps threatened to halt all oil shipments from the Middle East if American and Israeli military...

U.S. Solar Market Contracts in 2025 as Trump Rolls Back Renewable Energy Incentives

The United States solar industry experienced a notable slowdown in 2025, with new installations falling to 43 gigawatts a significant drop from the nearly 50 GW recorded in 2024. A joint report by the Solar Energy...

Politics

Russian Drone Strikes Hit Kharkiv and Dnipro, Injuring Over 20 Civilians

Russian drone attacks targeted two major Ukrainian cities late Monday and into the early hours of Tuesday, leaving more than 20 people injured and causing widespread property damage. The strikes hit Kharkiv, Ukraines...

Trump-Putin Call Addresses Iran War, Ukraine Peace, and Global Oil Crisis

President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin held a significant phone call on Monday, addressing the ongoing U.S.-Israeli war in Iran, the conflict in Ukraine, and growing instability in global energy...

Trump Hints at Possible U.S. Takeover of Cuba Amid Deepening Humanitarian Crisis

President Donald Trump raised eyebrows Monday when he suggested Cuba could be facing a potential U.S.-led takeover, describing the Caribbean nation as running on fumes with virtually no energy resources or financial...

Taiwan's MQ-9B SkyGuardian Drone Order Stays on Schedule Despite Middle East Conflict

Taiwans air force confirmed Tuesday that its procurement of four advanced MQ-9B SkyGuardian drones from U.S. defense manufacturer General Atomics remains on schedule and has not been disrupted by ongoing military...

U.S. Patriot Missiles Redeployed From South Korea Amid Middle East Conflict

South Korean President Lee Jae Myung acknowledged Tuesday that Seoul lacks the authority to prevent Washington from relocating U.S. military weapons stationed on the peninsula, following reports that Patriot missile...

Science

SpaceX Pivots Toward Moon City as Musk Reframes Long-Term Space Vision

SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has revealed a significant shift in the companys near-term space exploration strategy, announcing that SpaceX is now prioritizing the development of a self-growing city on the Moon rather than focusing...

SpaceX Prioritizes Moon Mission Before Mars as Starship Development Accelerates

Elon Musks SpaceX is shifting its near-term space exploration strategy, choosing to prioritize a return to the Moon before pursuing missions to Mars, according to a recent Wall Street Journal report citing sources familiar...

NASA and SpaceX Target Crew-11 Undocking From ISS Amid Medical Concern

NASA has confirmed that the agency, in coordination with SpaceX, is targeting no earlier than 5 p.m. Eastern Time (2200 GMT) on Wednesday, January 14, for the undocking of the SpaceX Crew-11 mission from the International...

Neuralink Plans High-Volume Brain Implant Production and Fully Automated Surgery by 2026

Elon Musks brain-computer interface company Neuralink is preparing for a major expansion, announcing plans to begin high-volume production of its brain implant devices and transition to a fully automated surgical procedure...

Jared Isaacman Confirmed as NASA Administrator, Becomes 15th Leader of U.S. Space Agency

The U.S. Senate has officially confirmed billionaire private astronaut Jared Isaacman as the new NASA administrator, making him the 15th leader in the agencys history. The confirmation, which took place on Wednesday, marks...

Technology

Amazon Engineers Investigate AI-Linked Outages as GenAI Coding Tools Raise Reliability Concerns

Amazon has convened a large group of engineers to investigate a pattern of service disruptions tied to artificial intelligence, according to a report by the Financial Times. The internal meeting was prompted by what the...

Chinese AI Stocks Surge as Tencent, MiniMax, and Zhipu Launch Agentic AI Programs

Chinese artificial intelligence stocks climbed sharply on Tuesday, driven by growing investor enthusiasm around agentic AI a rapidly emerging category of software capable of performing complex tasks autonomously on user...

Apple Bets Big on India: iPhone Production Hits 55 Million Units as China Reliance Fades

Apple has dramatically scaled up iPhone manufacturing in India, assembling approximately 55 million units throughout 2025 a striking 53% jump from the 36 million produced the year prior. The surge signals a decisive...

Anthropic Sues Pentagon Over AI Blacklist, Citing Free Speech Violations

Anthropic has filed a federal lawsuit challenging the Pentagons decision to place the AI company on a national security blacklist, marking a dramatic escalation in its standoff with the U.S. military. The California-based...

Yann LeCun's AI Startup AMI Raises $1 Billion at $3.5 Billion Valuation

Advanced Machine Intelligence (AMI), the artificial intelligence startup founded by renowned AI researcher and former Meta Platforms chief AI scientist Yann LeCun, has successfully closed a $1.03 billion funding round...