Library Genesis

{{Infobox website

| name = The Library Genesis Project

| screenshot = Library Genesis homepage.png

| caption = The project's homepage

| url = {{ubl|libgen.rs|libgen.is|libgen.st}}

| commercial = No

| registration = OptionalLibGen can be viewed, downloaded, uploaded without an account, but registration is required to view or read topics within its forum.

| language = {{ubl|English|Russian}}

| num_users =

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| owner =

| author =

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| current_status = Active (as of May 6, 2025){{Cite web |title=SLUM: The Shadow Library Uptime Monitor |url=https://open-slum.org/ |access-date=2025-03-24 |website=open-slum.org |language=en}}

}}

Library Genesis (shortened to LibGen) is a shadow library project for file-sharing access to scholarly journal articles, academic and general-interest books, images, comics, audiobooks, and magazines. The site enables free access to content that is otherwise paywalled or not digitized elsewhere.{{Cite journal |last=Cabanac |first=Guillaume |date=April 2015 |title=Bibliogifts in LibGen? A study of a text-sharing platform driven by biblioleaks and crowdsourcing |url=http://www.irit.fr/publis/SIG/2015_JASIST_C.pdf |url-status=live |journal=Journal of the Association for Information Science and Technology |volume=67 |issue=4 |pages=874–884 |citeseerx=10.1.1.698.4283 |doi=10.1002/asi.23445 |s2cid=6643023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180502120801/https://www.irit.fr/publis/SIG/2015_JASIST_C.pdf |archive-date=2 May 2018 |access-date=28 November 2015}} LibGen describes itself as a "links aggregator", providing a searchable database of items "collected from publicly available public Internet resources" as well as files uploaded "from users".{{Cite web |title=About Us |url=https://libgen.me/about |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190814155220/https://libgen.me/about |archive-date=14 August 2019 |access-date=6 April 2020 |website=libgen.me |quote=The libgen.me links aggregator is a community aiming at collecting and cataloging items descriptions for the most part of scientific, scientific and technical directions, as well as file metadata. In addition to the descriptions, the aggregator contains only links to third-party resources hosted by users. All information posted on the website is collected from publicly available public Internet resources and is intended solely for informational purposes.}} The URL libgen.is was down in January to March of 2025.{{Cite web |title=r/libgen FAQs |url=https://www.reddit.com/r/libgen/s/TXNQoOap93}}

LibGen provides access to copyrighted works, such as PDFs of content from Elsevier's ScienceDirect web-portal. Publishers like Elsevier have accused Library Genesis of internet piracy. Others assert that academic publishers unfairly benefit from government-funded research, written by researchers, many of whom are employed by public universities, and that LibGen is helping to disseminate research that should be freely available in the first place.{{Cite web |last=Glance |first=David |date=15 June 2015 |title=Elsevier acts against research article pirate sites and claims irreparable harm |url=https://theconversation.com/elsevier-acts-against-research-article-pirate-sites-and-claims-irreparable-harm-43293 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200411102540/https://theconversation.com/elsevier-acts-against-research-article-pirate-sites-and-claims-irreparable-harm-43293 |archive-date=11 April 2020 |access-date=6 April 2020 |publisher=The Conversation (U.S. edition)}}

History

Library Genesis has roots in the illegal underground samizdat culture in the Soviet Union.{{Cite news |last=Brown |first=Elizabeth Nolan |date=2022 |title=You Can't Stop Pirate Libraries |url=https://reason.com/2022/07/24/you-cant-stop-pirate-libraries/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221009180954/https://reason.com/2022/07/24/you-cant-stop-pirate-libraries/ |archive-date=9 October 2022 |access-date=9 October 2022 |work=Reason}} As access to printing in the Soviet Union was strictly controlled and censored, dissident intellectuals would hand-copy and retype manuscripts for secret circulation. This was effectively legalized under Soviet general secretary Mikhail Gorbachev in the 1980s, though the state monopoly on printed media remained.{{Cite encyclopedia |title=Samizdat {{!}} Dissident Press, Underground Publishing & Soviet Censorship |encyclopedia=Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/technology/samizdat |language=en}}

The volunteers moved into the Russian computer network ("RuNet") in the 1990s, which became awash with hundreds of thousands of uncoordinated contributions. Librarians became especially active, using borrowed access passwords to download copies of scientific and scholarly articles from Western Internet sources, then uploading them to RuNet.{{sfn|Bodó|2014|loc=Abstract}}

In the early 21st century, the efforts became coordinated, and integrated into one massive system known as Library Genesis, or LibGen, around 2008.{{Cite news |last1=Karaganis |first1=Joe |last2=Bodo |first2=Balazs |date=December 15, 2020 |title=Russia is building a new Napster — but for academic research |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/monkey-cage/wp/2018/07/13/russia-is-building-a-new-napster-but-for-academic-research/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201215035507/https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/monkey-cage/wp/2018/07/13/russia-is-building-a-new-napster-but-for-academic-research/ |archive-date=2020-12-15 |access-date=2024-12-22 |newspaper=Washington Post}}{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SxdZDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA53|title=Library Genesis in Numbers: Mapping the Underground Flow of Knowledge|first=Balázs|last=Bodó|isbn=9780262345705|date=2018-04-27|publisher=MIT Press |access-date=2020-11-01|archive-date=2023-01-17|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230117212905/https://books.google.com/books?id=SxdZDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA53|url-status=live}}{{cite book|author=Joe Karaganis|title=Shadow Libraries: Access to Knowledge in Global Higher Education|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SxdZDwAAQBAJ|year=2018|publisher=MIT Press|isbn=978-0-262-34570-5|page=53|access-date=2019-05-10|archive-date=2023-01-17|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230117212905/https://books.google.com/books?id=SxdZDwAAQBAJ|url-status=live}} It subsequently absorbed the contents of, and became the functional successor to, library.nu, which was shut down by legal action in 2012.{{Cite journal |last=Bodó|first=Balázs |date=2014 |title=A Short History of the Russian Digital Shadow Libraries |url=https://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2616631 |journal=SSRN Electronic Journal |doi=10.2139/ssrn.2616631 |issn=1556-5068|url-access=subscription }} By 2014, its catalog was more than twice the size of library.nu with 1.2 million records. {{As of|2024|2|4|post=,}} Library Genesis claimed to have more than 2.4 million non-fiction books, 80 million science journal articles, 2 million comics files, 2.2 million fiction books, and 0.4 million magazine issues.{{Cite web|url=http://LibGen.lc/stat.php|title=LibGen.lc Home Page|website=LibGen.lc |publisher=Library Genesis|access-date=2019-07-28|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190810191312/http://booksdescr.org/stat.php|archive-date=2019-08-10|url-status=dead}}

In 2020, the project was forked under a different domain, "libgen.fun", due to internal conflict within the project.{{Cite web|date=2021-02-07|title=Hey, shrine here. I made the original call to preserve Library Genesis because the project's simmering internal conflicts were coming to a head. The libgen.fun fork is the result of that conflict. You pose a good concern worth discussing openly. |last1=shrine |url=http://www.reddit.com/r/libgen/comments/lelp7y/reviving_the_libgen_community/gmiaj9h/|access-date=2021-07-30|website=reddit|archive-date=2021-07-30|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210730064917/https://www.reddit.com/r/libgen/comments/lelp7y/reviving_the_libgen_community/gmiaj9h/|url-status=live}}{{Better source needed|reason=The current source is insufficiently reliable (WP:NOTRS).|date=June 2022}} As a result, databases are being maintained independently and content differs between libgen.fun and other LibGen domains.

As of August 2024, the project, whose website was experiencing temporary outages and technical errors, appeared to no longer be actively managed and its lead programmer was reported to be "inactive".{{citation |last=Van der Sar |first=Ernesto |title=Popular Shadow Library ‘LibGen’ Breaks Down Amidst Legal Troubles |publisher=TorrentFreak |date=14 August 2024 |url=https://torrentfreak.com/popular-shadow-library-libgen-breaks-down-amidst-legal-troubles-240814/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240814103412/https://torrentfreak.com/popular-shadow-library-libgen-breaks-down-amidst-legal-troubles-240814/ |archive-date=14 August 2024 |url-status=live}}

In mid-December 2024, as the majority of Library Genesis domains were seized or disabled through legal action from a group of publishers led by Pearson Education, the German consortium {{ill|Clearingstelle Urheberrecht im Internet|de}} (CUII), composed of copyright holder groups and internet service providers, also instituted a country-wide blocking order against Library Genesis at the request of publishers whose names were redacted.{{citation |last=Van der Sar |first=Ernesto |title=Domain Seizures and German ISP Blockade Add to Libgen's Troubles |publisher=TorrentFreak |date=22 December 2024 |url=https://torrentfreak.com/domain-seizures-and-german-isp-blockade-add-to-libgens-troubles-241222/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241222142416/https://torrentfreak.com/domain-seizures-and-german-isp-blockade-add-to-libgens-troubles-241222/ |archive-date=22 December 2024 |url-status=live}} The latter action was taken without court authorization; instead, the Federal Network Agency was consulted to clear the net neutrality requirements.{{citation |last=Van der Sar |first=Ernesto |title=ISPs and Rightsholders Unite to Block Pirate Sites in Germany |publisher=TorrentFreak |date=11 March 2021 |url=https://torrentfreak.com/isps-and-rightsholders-unite-to-block-pirate-sites-in-germany-210311/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241219090606/https://torrentfreak.com/isps-and-rightsholders-unite-to-block-pirate-sites-in-germany-210311/ |archive-date=19 December 2024 |url-status=live}}

Legal issues

= Litigation =

== Elsevier lawsuit (2015) ==

On June 3, 2015, Library Genesis (along with the creator of Sci-Hub, Alexandra Elbakyan) was sued by Elsevier, the academic division of the third-largest publishing group by worldwide revenue in 2014.{{citation |title=The World's 57 Largest Book Publishers, 2015 |publisher=Publishers Weekly |date=26 June 2015 |url=https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/international/international-book-news/article/67224-the-world-s-57-largest-book-publishers-2015.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150630235907/https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/international/international-book-news/article/67224-the-world-s-57-largest-book-publishers-2015.html |archive-date=30 June 2015 |url-status=live}}. Elsevier accused it of "operating an international network of piracy and copyright infringement"{{citation |last=Van der Sar |first=Ernesto |title=Elsevier Cracks Down on Pirated Scientific Articles |publisher=TorrentFreak |date=9 June 2015 |url=https://torrentfreak.com/elsevier-cracks-down-on-pirated-scientific-articles-150609/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150609190404/https://torrentfreak.com/elsevier-cracks-down-on-pirated-scientific-articles-150609/ |archive-date=9 June 2015 |url-status=live}} and granting free access to articles and books. In response, the admins accused Elsevier of gaining most of its profits from publicly funded research which should be freely available to all as they are paid for by taxpayers. Elsevier's lawyers then requested the Public Interest Registry to disable one of the domains covered by the lawsuit without a court order but were refused. On June 18, 2015, the District Court for the Southern District of New York allowed Elsevier to serve notice on the defendants by email. Within days of the court decision (before June 22), the then main "libgen.org" website and several mirrors went offline.{{citation |last=Van der Sar |first=Ernesto |title=Libgen Goes Down As Legal Pressure Mounts |publisher=TorrentFreak |date=22 June 2015 |url=https://torrentfreak.com/libgen-goes-down-as-legal-pressure-mounts-150622/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150623203147/https://torrentfreak.com/libgen-goes-down-as-legal-pressure-mounts-150622/ |archive-date=23 June 2015 |url-status=live}}

As a result of Elsevier's lawsuit, in late October 2015 the District Court for the Southern District of New York ordered LibGen to shut down and to suspend use of the domain name (libgen.org),{{cite web|date=2 November 2015|title=Court Orders Shutdown of LibGen, Bookfi and Sci-Hub - TorrentFreak|url=https://torrentfreak.com/court-orders-shutdown-of-libgen-bookfi-and-sci-hub-151102/|access-date=2017-08-18|website=TorrentFreak|archive-date=2020-05-04|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200504210607/https://torrentfreak.com/court-orders-shutdown-of-libgen-bookfi-and-sci-hub-151102/|url-status=live}} but the site remained accessible through alternative domains.{{Cite journal|last1=Schiermeier|first1=Quirin|year=2015|title=Pirate research-paper sites play hide-and-seek with publishers|url=https://www.nature.com/news/pirate-research-paper-sites-play-hide-and-seek-with-publishers-1.18876|journal=Nature|doi=10.1038/nature.2015.18876|access-date=2015-12-06|s2cid=188158277|archive-date=2019-08-07|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190807021351/http://www.nature.com/news/pirate-research-paper-sites-play-hide-and-seek-with-publishers-1.18876|url-status=live|url-access=subscription}}{{cite web|date=21 November 2015|title=Sci-hub, bookfi and libgen resurface after being shut down|url=https://torrentfreak.com/sci-hub-and-libgen-resurface-after-being-shut-down-151121/|access-date=7 January 2016|publisher=TorrentFreak|archive-date=4 May 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200504205320/https://torrentfreak.com/sci-hub-and-libgen-resurface-after-being-shut-down-151121/|url-status=live}}

== Pearson, McGraw Hill, Macmillan and Cengage lawsuit (2023–2024) ==

On September 14, 2023, the educational publishers Pearson Education (the then third-largest publisher by global revenue{{citation |last1=Milliott |first1=Jim |last2=Wischenbart |first2=Ruediger |title=The 10 Largest Publishers in the World |publisher=Publishers Weekly |date=17 October 2024 |url=https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/international/Frankfurt-Book-Fair/article/96238-the-ten-largest-publishers-in-the-world.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241125145405/https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/international/Frankfurt-Book-Fair/article/96238-the-ten-largest-publishers-in-the-world.html |archive-date=25 November 2024 |url-status=live}}{{citation |last=M. |first=Zul |title=10 Largest Publishers in the World (2023) |publisher= |date=22 July 2023 |url=https://publishingstate.com/10-largest-publishers-in-the-world-2/2023/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230803051201/https://publishingstate.com/10-largest-publishers-in-the-world-2/2023/ |archive-date=3 August 2023 |url-status=live}}), McGraw Hill Education, Macmillan Publishers and Cengage Group initiated a lawsuit for copyright infringement against Library Genesis before the District Court for the Southern District of New York. They claimed that the Library Genesis websites "deprive [them] and their authors of income from their creative works, devalue the textbook market and [their] works, and may cause [them] to cease publishing certain works". They demanded control or deletion of the Library Genesis domains and the seizure of its operators' alleged profits.{{citation |last=Maxwell |first=Andy |title=Publishers’ Lawsuit Accuses Libgen of “Staggering” Copyright Infringement |publisher=TorrentFreak |date=15 September 2023 |url=https://torrentfreak.com/publishers-lawsuit-accuses-libgen-of-staggering-copyright-infringement-230915/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230915112451/https://torrentfreak.com/publishers-lawsuit-accuses-libgen-of-staggering-copyright-infringement-230915/ |archive-date=15 September 2023 |url-status=live}} On March 1, 2024, the publishers requested a default judgment and an injunction compelling the gateway providers IPFS, Pinata Technologies and Cloudflare to deny services to Library Genesis.{{citation |last=Van der Sar |first=Ernesto |title=Publishers Target LibGen Domains, IPFS Gateways, Plus $30m in Piracy Damages |publisher=TorrentFreak |date=4 March 2024 |url=https://torrentfreak.com/publishers-target-libgen-domains-ipfs-gateways-and-seek-30m-in-piracy-damages240304/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240304205759/https://torrentfreak.com/publishers-target-libgen-domains-ipfs-gateways-and-seek-30m-in-piracy-damages240304/ |archive-date=4 March 2024 |url-status=live}}

On September 26, 2024, a US judge ordered LibGen to pay the publishers US$30 million, but no one knows who runs it.{{Cite news |last=Belanger |first=Ashley |date=2024-09-26 |title=Pirate library must pay publishers $30M, but no one knows who runs it |url=https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2024/09/pirate-library-must-pay-publishers-30m-but-no-one-knows-who-runs-it/ |access-date=2024-12-22 |work=ArsTechnica |language=en-US}}

In December 2024, the publishers succeeded in seizing the "library.lol" domain and taking most of the other Library Genesis domains offline.

= Hosting country =

LibGen is reported to be registered in both Russia and the Netherlands, making the appropriate jurisdiction for legal action unclear.{{Cite news |last=Mance |first=Henry|date=2015-05-26 |title=Publishers win landmark case against ebook pirates |url=http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/988850e0-038c-11e5-a70f-00144feabdc0.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150708065407/http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/988850e0-038c-11e5-a70f-00144feabdc0.html |archive-date=2015-07-08 |access-date=2015-10-05 |work=Financial Times |issn=0307-1766}}

= Blocks =

Some Libgen URLs are blocked by a number of ISPs in the United Kingdom,{{Cite magazine |last=Kamen |first=Matt |date=2015-05-27 |title=UK ISPs must block ebook pirate sites (Wired UK) |url=https://www.wired.co.uk/article/high-court-blocks-pirate-ebook-sites |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190807074819/https://www.wired.co.uk/article/high-court-blocks-pirate-ebook-sites |archive-date=2019-08-07 |access-date=2017-08-18 |magazine=Wired UK}} but such DNS-based blocks are claimed to do little to deter access. It is also blocked by ISPs in France,{{Cite news|url=https://www.nextinpact.com/news/107689-les-principaux-fai-francais-doivent-bloquer-sci-hub-et-libgen.htm|title=Les principaux FAI français doivent bloquer Sci-Hub et LibGen|last=Rees|first=Marc|date=2019-03-30|work=Next INpact|access-date=2020-01-16|trans-title=Main French ISPs must block Sci-Hub and LibGen|archive-date=2019-04-03|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190403021242/https://www.nextinpact.com/news/107689-les-principaux-fai-francais-doivent-bloquer-sci-hub-et-libgen.htm|url-status=live}} Germany,{{Cite news |last=Maxwell |first=Andy |date=2018-08-08 |title=Vodafone Blocks LibGen Following Elsevier, Springer & Macmillan Injunction |url=https://torrentfreak.com/vodafone-blocks-libgen-following-elsevier-springer-macmillan-injunction-180808/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210513162733/https://torrentfreak.com/vodafone-blocks-libgen-following-elsevier-springer-macmillan-injunction-180808/ |archive-date=2021-05-13 |access-date=2024-12-22 |work=TorrentFreak}} Greece,{{Cite web|url=https://opi.gr/en/committee1/decisions-committee|title=Decisions of the Committee - ΟΡΓΑΝΙΣΜΟΣ ΠΝΕΥΜΑΤΙΚΗΣ ΙΔΙΟΚΤΗΣΙΑΣ|website=opi.gr|access-date=2019-12-04|archive-date=2021-05-13|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210513162734/https://opi.gr/en/committee1/decisions-committee|url-status=live}} Italy,{{Cite web |last=Autorità per le Garanzie nelle Comunicazioni |title=Delibera 178-18-CSP - Documento - AGCOM |url=https://www.agcom.it/documentazione/documento?p_p_auth=fLw7zRht&p_p_id=101_INSTANCE_FnOw5lVOIXoE&p_p_lifecycle=0&p_p_col_id=column-1&p_p_col_count=1&_101_INSTANCE_FnOw5lVOIXoE_struts_action=%2Fasset_publisher%2Fview_content&_101_INSTANCE_FnOw5lVOIXoE_assetEntryId=11533826&_101_INSTANCE_FnOw5lVOIXoE_type=document |access-date=2023-01-08 |website=www.agcom.it |archive-date=2023-01-08 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230108164609/https://www.agcom.it/documentazione/documento?p_p_auth=fLw7zRht&p_p_id=101_INSTANCE_FnOw5lVOIXoE&p_p_lifecycle=0&p_p_col_id=column-1&p_p_col_count=1&_101_INSTANCE_FnOw5lVOIXoE_struts_action=%2Fasset_publisher%2Fview_content&_101_INSTANCE_FnOw5lVOIXoE_assetEntryId=11533826&_101_INSTANCE_FnOw5lVOIXoE_type=document |url-status=live }} Belgium (which redirects to the Belgian Federal Police blockpage),{{Cite news|url=https://www.lecho.be/entreprises/technologie/les-editeurs-scientifiques-se-liguent-contre-la-piraterie/10172391.html|title=Les éditeurs scientifiques se liguent contre la piraterie|date=2019-10-16|website=L'Echo|language=fr|access-date=2020-01-14|archive-date=2021-05-13|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210513183744/https://www.lecho.be/entreprises/technologie/les-editeurs-scientifiques-se-liguent-contre-la-piraterie/10172391.html|url-status=live}} and Russia (in November 2018).{{Cite web|url=https://torrentfreak.com/denmark-blocks-sci-hub-plus-streaming-torrent-youtube-ripping-sites-190926/|title=Denmark Blocks Sci-Hub Plus Streaming, Torrent & YouTube-Ripping Sites|date=2019-09-26|website=TorrentFreak|language=en|access-date=2019-10-09|archive-date=2021-05-13|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210513124856/https://torrentfreak.com/denmark-blocks-sci-hub-plus-streaming-torrent-youtube-ripping-sites-190926/|url-status=live}}{{Cite web|date=November 30, 2018|title=Sci-Hub "Pirate Bay of Science" Blocked in Russia Over Medical Studies * TorrentFreak|url=https://torrentfreak.com/sci-hub-pirate-bay-of-science-blocked-in-russia-over-medical-studies-181130/|url-status=live|access-date=2021-10-04|language=en|archive-date=2018-12-05|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181205145755/https://torrentfreak.com/sci-hub-pirate-bay-of-science-blocked-in-russia-over-medical-studies-181130/}} On March 23, 2024, the Dutch pirate site blocklist has been reported to now include Anna's Archive and Library Genesis, based on a request by BREIN, a local anti-piracy group.{{cite news |last=Van der Sar |first=Ernesto |title=Dutch Court Orders ISP to Block 'Anna's Archive' and 'LibGen' |url=https://torrentfreak.com/dutch-court-orders-isp-to-block-annas-archive-and-libgen-240322/ |date=March 23, 2024 |work=TorrentFreak |url-status=live |archiveurl=https://archive.today/20240323113246/https://torrentfreak.com/dutch-court-orders-isp-to-block-annas-archive-and-libgen-240322/ |archivedate=March 23, 2024 |accessdate=March 23, 2024 }}

= Alleged Meta AI training =

Court documents unsealed in March 2025 suggested that Meta Platforms had used LibGen resources to train its generative language AI models. The documents were part of a class-action lawsuit filed against Meta by the novelists Richard Kadrey and Christopher Golden and comedian Sarah Silverman.{{Cite news |last=Knibbs |first=Kate |title=Meta Secretly Trained Its AI on a Notorious Piracy Database, Newly Unredacted Court Docs Reveal |url=https://www.wired.com/story/new-documents-unredacted-meta-copyright-ai-lawsuit/ |access-date=2025-03-21 |work=Wired |language=en-US |issn=1059-1028}}{{cite news |last1=Reisner |first1=Alex |title=The Unbelievable Scale of AI’s Pirated-Books Problem |url=https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2025/03/libgen-meta-openai/682093/ |access-date=March 25, 2025 |work=The Atlantic |date=March 20, 2025}}

Usage

Until the end of 2014, Sci-Hub, which provides free access to millions of research papers and books, relied on LibGen as storage. Papers requested by users were requested from LibGen and served from there if available, otherwise they were fetched by other means and then stored on LibGen.{{Cite journal|last1=Himmelstein|first1=Daniel S|last2=Romero|first2=Ariel Rodriguez|last3=Levernier|first3=Jacob G|last4=Munro|first4=Thomas Anthony|last5=McLaughlin|first5=Stephen Reid|last6=Greshake Tzovaras|first6=Bastian|last7=Greene|first7=Casey S|date=2018-03-01|title=Sci-Hub provides access to nearly all scholarly literature|journal=eLife|language=en|volume=7|doi=10.7554/eLife.32822|issn=2050-084X|pmc=5832410|pmid=29424689 |doi-access=free }}

In 2019 archivists and freedom of information activists launched a project to better seed and host LibGen's data dumps.{{Cite news |last=Gault |first=Matthew |date=2019-12-02 |title=Archivists Are Trying to Make Sure a 'Pirate Bay of Science' Never Goes Down |url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/archivists-are-trying-to-make-sure-a-pirate-bay-of-science-never-goes-down/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210613201736/https://www.vice.com/en/article/pa7jxb/archivists-are-trying-to-make-sure-a-pirate-bay-of-science-never-goes-down |archive-date=13 June 2021 |access-date=23 October 2020 |work=Vice |language=en}} The project's spokesperson and coordinator 'shrine' described the effort as a way for a "permanent library card for the world" and reported that the response has been "overwhelmingly positive from everyone".{{cite news |title=Meet the Guy Behind the LibGen Torrent Seeding Movement * TorrentFreak |url=https://torrentfreak.com/meet-the-guy-behind-the-libgen-torrent-seeding-movement-191205/ |access-date=23 October 2020 |language=en |archive-date=13 May 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210513162733/https://torrentfreak.com/meet-the-guy-behind-the-libgen-torrent-seeding-movement-191205/ |url-status=live }} In 2020, the project launched a peer-to-peer digital library of content on Sci-Hub and Library Genesis using IPFS.{{Cite web|title=IPFS Free Library|url=https://freeread.org/ipfs.html|access-date=2021-07-05|website=freeread.org|archive-date=2021-06-25|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210625121013/http://freeread.org/ipfs.html|url-status=live}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.reddit.com/r/DataHoarder/comments/jb1hkn/p2p_free_library_help_build_humanitys_free/|title=p2p Free Library: Help build humanity's free library on IPFS with Sci-Hub and Library Genesis|website=reddit|date=14 October 2020|access-date=23 October 2020|archive-date=19 October 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201019163821/https://www.reddit.com/r/DataHoarder/comments/jb1hkn/p2p_free_library_help_build_humanitys_free/|url-status=live}}