The crackle of old songs and the buzz of self-checkout kiosks tell a single story of how AI, audiobooks and automation are transforming not just how we read, but how we remember

Sharjah, November 12, 2025

Between the crackle of a phonograph playing an old Abdel Halim Hafez tune and the soft hum of self-checkout kiosks at a fancy, futuristic pop-up store, there’s a world at this 44th edition of Sharjah International Book Fair 2025 (SIBF) that’s straddling nostalgia and next-generation tech.

Amidst old books and timeless popular classics at the 12-day event, the buzz of Artificial Intelligence (AI), audiobooks and automation is unmissable at the region’s largest book fair, quietly screaming at the visitors – young and old alike – as if to tell them how they’re changing not only how stories are written and sold, but how they are lived and remembered.

At a pop-up run by Menassah Distribution Company, visitors scan their own purchases at a self-paying checkout kiosk.  “It’s faster, smarter, and lets our staff have more time to engage with the visitors,” said a staff member. “This is how the bookstore of the future will look.”

For others, AI is more than a convenience – it’s a creative partner. Even for Ehab Elrifai, owner of New Azbakya, who’s selling vintage Arab newspapers and magazines dating back to the early 1900s at this SIBF. Yet even his sepia-tinted corner of the fair is turning digital. “I’ve started using AI to catalogue and digitise thousands of magazines,” he said. “I’m planning an online archive that will preserve Arab print culture and make it searchable for students, researchers across the world and basically anyone interested in Arab culture.”

While exhibitors explore new tools, authors are finding ways to balance technology with craft. Shirley Jump, a New York Times bestselling writer and one of the several prominent speakers at this SIBF, says she embraces AI for productivity, if not for storytelling. “I use AI to create handouts for my courses, design social media graphics, or summarise transcripts,” she said. “It saves time – it’s like having an assistant. But I never use it for fiction. That’s where the joy is. AI can’t put in the emotion, the soul.”

Jump, known for books like The Sweetheart Secret and The Sweetheart Rules, said she hopes writers won’t lose sight of the craft itself. “Everyone’s rushing to publish. AI can help speed things up, sure – but good writing still takes time, care, and heart,” she added.

AI in interpretation and beyond

Meanwhile, in a first for the SIBF, Jump’s live forum was simultaneously translated by an AI-powered real-time interpretation system, offering audiences instant access to her talk in six languages – English, Arabic, French, Chinese, Hindi and Spanish. “Our goal is to make knowledge borderless,” said Tabish Zaidi, CEO of Jeem & Co, the UAE-based startup that’s piloting the system at SIBF 2025. “AI interpretation removes linguistic barriers and allows every visitor, regardless of language, to share the same experience, live, human, and inclusive.”

For young readers, the change is already embedded in their routines. Fatima Al Shehhi, a 21-year-old literature student from the University of Sharjah visiting this SIBF, said she now listens to audiobooks during commutes and uses AI tools to summarise readings. “It doesn’t replace reading for sure but it does help me stay connected when life gets busy,” she said while scouting for audio books in Hall 6 of the Sharjah Expo Centre where the 12-day festival is being held by the Sharjah Book Authority (SBA) until November 16 under the theme Between you and a book.

Another student, Asmi Pattnaik, 13, from Our Own English High school, whose interests range from children’s fantasy, adventure and graphic novel series Amulet besides books on AI said: “Some AI reading platforms actually let you adjust the tone and pacing. It’s strange at first, but kind of amazing – like reading and watching at the same time.”

And publishers at the SIBF are keeping pace too. Hanes Medinaceli, Sales Manager for the English section at Little Puffin Publishing, said titles related to AI are flying off shelves. “All six of our AI-themed children’s books sold out within days,” he said. “Even audiobooks like Diary of a Wimpy Kid are now among our bestsellers. Families are embracing the format – it makes reading a shared experience again.”

Still, amid the algorithms and audiobooks, the fair’s enduring appeal lies in its blend of cultures and eras – from century-old Egyptian magazines to cutting-edge storytelling workshops powered by machine learning.

“Technology is rewriting the rules,” Jump said. “But whether you’re reading a 1912 magazine or a story co-written with AI – it’s still about connection. That part will never change. And that’s what makes this fair so special.”

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