(Whose defaults?) Is artificial intelligence reorienting archaeological methods?
Quick summary
arXiv:2609.11198v1 Announce Type: cross Abstract: Generative AI and the practice of "vibe coding" are changing how archaeologists carry out computational research, but their effects on the discipline's range of methods is still understudied. In this paper, we evaluate whether large language models (LLMs) are narrowing the variety of methods archaeologists use. We first analysed approximately 119,000 archaeology abstracts from Scopus, covering publications from 2010 to 2025. Using a locally run LLM, we identified the computational methods reported in each abstract and organised them into 25 bro
Key takeaways
- arXiv:2609.11198v1 Announce Type: cross Abstract: Generative AI and the practice of "vibe coding" are changing how archaeologists carry out computational research, but their effects on the discipline's range of methods is still understudied.
- In this paper, we evaluate whether large language models (LLMs) are narrowing the variety of methods archaeologists use.
- We first analysed approximately 119,000 archaeology abstracts from Scopus, covering publications from 2010 to 2025.
Why it matters
“(Whose defaults?) Is artificial intelligence reorienting archaeological methods?” highlights the need for repeatable measurement rather than a single impressive demonstration. Independent validation across datasets and clearly stated limitations determine whether a result can guide product decisions.
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