Mar 3.

From Labels to Smart Recognition: The Evolution of Museum Information Access

Museum Labels: where it all started

For centuries, museums have used labels to provide valuable context for their exhibits. These small plaques offer essential details—such as the artist’s name, the title of the work, and the year it was created—helping visitors connect with the artwork. While labels serve as a foundational tool for interpretation, museums today have the opportunity to enhance storytelling by offering more immersive and interactive experiences.

From a visitor’s perspective, labels, while effective, have some natural limitations:

• Space Constraints – Labels provide key facts but may not have room for deeper historical context or storytelling.
• Visitor Flow – In busy galleries, reading labels can be challenging, especially when artworks attract large crowds.
• Language Accessibility – Labels are often available in only one or two languages, which may limit accessibility for international visitors.

The introduction of QR codes

As museums continue to evolve, many have adopted QR codes to enhance visitor engagement and provide deeper insights beyond traditional labels. QR codes serve as a bridge between physical exhibits and digital content, offering visitors access to multimedia explanations, high-resolution images, and expert commentary. They were introduced as a cost-effective and flexible way to modernize information access without requiring extensive hardware installations.

However, despite their benefits, QR codes present certain challenges:

• Dependence on Internet Connection – Many museums, especially in historic buildings, have weak or no Wi-Fi, making QR codes unreliable.
• Physical Installation & Maintenance – Each QR code must be printed, placed near an artwork, and replaced if it gets damaged or outdated.
• Inconvenience for Visitors – Scanning QR codes requires multiple steps: opening a camera app, aligning the code correctly, and waiting for a webpage to load—disrupting the immersive museum experience.

As technology advances, the next evolution in museum engagement is already here: smart recognition.

Expanding Engagement: Smart Recognition, The "Shazam for Art" Revolution

Instead of searching for a label or scanning a QR code, visitors can now simply point their phone’s camera at an artwork, and—like a Shazam for art—a smart recognition system instantly identifies it, displaying relevant information in real time. This technology eliminates the need for physical markers or external searches, creating a seamless and intuitive way for visitors to engage with exhibits.

With a single gesture, they can access a wealth of content, including historical context, artist insights, multimedia storytelling, and interactive elements that bring the artwork to life. Whether exploring a painting’s symbolism, watching a short video about its creation, or listening to an expert’s commentary, visitors receive a personalized and enriched experience without disrupting the natural flow of their visit.

Unlike traditional methods, smart recognition leverages artificial intelligence (AI) and computer vision to provide an instant, seamless experience. Here’s why it’s superior:

• Instant Access – No scanning, searching, or waiting. Just aim and discover.
• Works Offline – AI-driven recognition does not require a constant internet connection.
• Dynamic Content – Instead of static text, visitors receive audio guides, historical context, artist interviews, and even augmented reality overlays for a more immersive experience.
• Personalized Experience – Museums can tailor content based on visitor preferences, allowing deeper engagement.

MIT – Museum Innovation Technology: The Next Step in Museum Engagement

AR filter by Hidonix - Escher Exhibition, Barcelona

For the past eight years, we have been at the forefront of computer vision innovation, long before it became a mainstream technology. When we first embarked on this journey, computer vision was primarily confined to academic research and niche applications in other industries—far from the everyday tools we see today, like Google Lens and other object recognition algorithms. At that time, no one had considered applying this technology to museums and artworks, which present entirely different challenges from general object detection.

Museums require a specialized approach—unlike standard object recognition, identifying an artwork involves handling variations in lighting, reflections from glass, large crowds obstructing visibility, and even conservation constraints that limit the placement of digital markers. Traditional computer vision models were not built for these conditions. That’s why we didn’t just adopt an existing algorithm—we developed our own, from the ground up, specifically for cultural institutions.

So what sets MIT-Museum Innovation Technology apart?

• Purpose-Built for Museums – Unlike generic object recognition models, MIT is designed to work with the intricacies of artworks, handling lighting inconsistencies, artwork variations, and conservation constraints that standard AI models struggle with.
• Beyond Object Recognition – Traditional AI can recognize objects, but MIT provides deep, contextual insights, offering rich storytelling, artist backgrounds, and historical significance at a level that generic recognition tools cannot match.
• Seamless, Markerless Interaction – No QR codes, no external scanning apps—just point and discover. MIT instantly identifies artworks and delivers immersive content without disrupting the visitor experience.
• Highly Optimized AI Model – Our system has been trained on vast datasets specifically curated for museum environments, ensuring exceptional accuracy and reliability even in dynamic conditions.
• Adaptive and Scalable – Whether for small galleries or large-scale museums, MIT seamlessly integrates into existing museum infrastructures, adapting to different collections and exhibition setups.
• Inclusive and Multilingual – MIT ensures universal accessibility, offering multiple languages, audio guides, text-to-speech features, and content customization for different visitor preferences.

The Future of Museum Technology

As museums continue to evolve, smart recognition is redefining how visitors interact with art and history. No longer constrained by static labels or unreliable QR codes, audiences can now explore exhibits effortlessly, interactively, and intelligently.

At Hidonix, we don’t just develop museum technology—we innovate the future of cultural engagement. If your museum is ready to embrace the next generation of visitor experiences, let’s make it happen.

📩 Contact us to learn how MIT can transform your museum.