Guidelines for the Responsible Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Genealogy at RootsTech 2025

See CRAIGEN.org

The Coalition for the Responsible Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Genealogy will have a panel discussion at RootsTech 2025. The presentation will take place Friday in Ballroom B at Salt Palace and will also be live-streamed at 4:30 p.m. MT. There is a link for submitting questions.

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfQmg3ZefeLMDbYt85OCZJGQCWGo_Dp67KmVNpp2p6Xqv6qQg/viewform

Here is the link to the panel discussion. 

https://www.familysearch.org/en/rootstech/session/guidelines-for-the-responsible-use-of-artificial-intelligence-ai-in-genealogy 

The panel discussion will be broadcast live. 

The FamilySearch Double Bind

 

Sometimes it is difficult to work with FamilySearch.org. This is especially true when I am consulting with people who live in Latin America. Although, I assume that the problems are encountered in other areas of the world. The first part of the problem is access for those I consult with to many of the records on the FamilySearch.org website. In some countries, such as Argentina and Uruguay, nearly all the records are restricted. The restriction notes that the records can only be viewed in a FamilySearch Center. Here is an example of the map showing the location of FamilySearch Centers in Buenos Aires, Argentina. 

Many of the FamilySearch Centers, as you can see from the list have no phone number and nothing notifying potential patrons of the hours of operation. So, the people that I show the FamilySearch website find it difficult or impossible to actually see any of the records they need to find their ancestors. Of course, the main problem started during the COVID epidemic but the fact that some of nearly all of the centers have no regular hours continues to this day. In addition, even if those I send to FamilySearch Centers actually get some help, many times the volunteers at the Centers do not know how to access the restricted records. 

Another interesting side note that apparently is happening with all the FamilySearch Centers including the Salt Lake Library, is that if you get information about a center you are told that they only support people in French and Malagasy. That's right, the centers contact information says they are all limited to those two languages. 

In another Latin American location, Puerto Rico, which is actually part of the United States, a recent survey, done by one of my friends, did not find even one functional FamilySearch Center in the entire territory out of 11 locations listed by FamilySearch. One Center was only open one hour a month. 

It seems like FamilySearch is helping a lot of people when they claim over 6000 FamilySearch Centers, but due to little or no trained volunteers, the restricted records, the lack of regular hours or contact information,most potential patrons (guests) are left without access to any pertinent records. Here is more of the information from a quote from my friend: (some changes to the original for privacy reasons).

I live in Latin America and I have tried to get in touch with all the family history centers listed on the map in Puerto Rico. Only one has hours of operation, none have a working phone number, and all have as spoken language French and Malagasy.

Being curious, I tried other family history centers in Guadeloupe, Haiti, Nicaragua, Samoa, etc… They all have the same problem… if they have phone numbers, they do not work and when they only have emails to make an appointment, I emailed about 30 of them and only one has responded. (All of them had French and Malagasy as spoken languages)

Any suggestions? Any possible solutions? Any good ideas at all? 

My suggestion is simple. Consolidate the existing centers in one larger center with trained and capable people. Instead of having 36 partially operating centers in Buenos Aires, how about have one central location that actually works and is open enough to help patrons. 

Last note. We are open from 9:00 am to 9:00 pm Monday through Thursday and from 9:00 am to 6:00 pm on Friday at the BYU Library Family History Center and all our missionaries are experienced and/or trained. We are closed any time BYU is closed for holidays and other breaks.   

Relatives at RootsTech is now online

 

https://www.familysearch.org/en/rootstech/

Relatives at RootsTech is always interesting. The large number above for me reflects the number of generations I have in the FamilySearch.org Family Tree. Your number may vary considerably. I have never been able to process the large number of relatives I have. I am glad to meet them and because I live in Provo, Utah, I have a number of relatives in my neighborhood. Some of them are even my friends. 

Back to RootsTech. If you register for the free online or for the paid live at the Salt Palace in Salt Lake City, Utah, you can go to the website for RootsTech.org and see your potential relatives. There is also a map showing you where they all live. Here is my map.

Hope to see you at RootsTech in person. 

Announcing MyHeritage.com DNA Ethnicity Estimate v2.5

Introducing Ethnicity Estimate v2.5: The Long-Awaited Improved DNA Ethnicity Model 

Quoting from the introductory email dated 2 February 2025:

Today we’re delighted to release Ethnicity Estimate v2.5 to everyone. New MyHeritage DNA users will receive Ethnicity Estimate v2.5 results from day one. As for existing MyHeritage DNA users who have received v0.95 ethnicity results before: we want everyone to be comfortable with their results, so we’re giving them the choice: Ethnicity Estimate v2.5 is opt-in, and is not automatically activated for our existing DNA users, so it will not override the previous ethnicity results. It’s up to you to decide if you want to see the new results, or if you prefer to stick with the original ones. If you decide to receive your updated results, you’ll be able to switch back and forth between the models at any time using a simple dropdown on the results page. Ethnicity Estimate v2.5 is free for all users.

 Ethnicity Estimate v2.5 Overview

The Ethnicity Estimate v2.5 model is based on advanced new algorithms developed by the MyHeritage Science Team from the ground up following two years of extensive research and fine tuning. The new ethnicity breakdown provides better resolution; for example, individuals whose DNA results previously showed Scandinavian ethnicity will now receive results specifying what percentage of their ethnic makeup is Swedish, Norwegian, or Danish

Learn more in our blog post about Ethnicity Estimate v2.5 and please see this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CffkVq74joo

Three more keynote speakers for RootsTech

https://www.familysearch.org/en/rootstech/

RootsTech.org announces three additional keynote speakers from around the world. Quoting from the announcement:

Ysabelle Cuevas

Philippines born singer and songwriter Ysabelle Cuevas got her start releasing covers of popular songs on YouTube. Since 2016, her work has amassed over 700 Million streams, with her biggest release “I Like You So Much, You’ll Know It” collecting over 175 Million streams on YouTube to date. In 2018, she released her first original song “Daunted” through Warner Music Philippines, which has since accumulated millions of streams in SouthEast Asia and North America.

Ysabelle’s incredibly versatile voice and innate mastery of vocal production has allowed her to bridge genres and cultures. A lover of Korean culture herself, Ysabelle has personally translated Korean songs into both Filipino and English. In July of 2020, she was the Grand Prize winner of YG Entertainment’s song cover contest where she performed an English version of “Wayo” by Bang Ye-dam of K-Pop group Treasure. That October, Ysabelle’s cover of “Boy With Luv” was featured on Glamour’s "You Sang My Song" series, featuring positive reactions from original artist and K-pop megastars BTS themselves. Ysabelle has since shifted her focus to her original music, and is currently in the studio writing and recording her next big release.

Marco Lui

Marco Lui, also known by his stage name "Mr. Lui," is an Italian mime and comedian born on July 18, 1975, in Milan. With a degree in Physical Education from the University of Verona, Lui began his career as a cabaret artist and Michael Jackson imitator before making his mark in television. His unique comedy style, inspired by classic silent film humor, led to appearances on Mediaset programs like Beato fra le donne, and his signature character, Mr. Lui, became popular on Italia 1, drawing comparisons to Mr. Bean.

Beyond television, Lui has built a diverse career in film production and direction, with notable works like The Book of Life (2010) and Dr. Smith and the Fantastic Castle (2012). As a longtime collaborator with Italian entertainer Fiorello, Lui directed and edited numerous backstage pieces for Fiorello's shows, blending his comedic vision with technical skill. An active member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, he served as a missionary in the South of Italy and has also participated in cultural projects tied to the church. Today, he continues to engage with Italian media as the presenter for the Zecchino d’Oro selections, where he also contributes his talents as a comedian and voice actor, bringing his signature humor and charisma to the show.

Los Chicaneros

We are Los Chicaneros, an ordinary family who wants to share, through humor, various situations that most families experience.

Today, we want to tell you a little bit about our story. We met 36 years ago, and next December, we will celebrate 32 years of marriage. Our family consists of Nelson (the father), Cristina (the mother), Nicolás (the eldest son), and María Antonia (the youngest daughter).

We met at a diving club in Cali, Colombia. We share a love for nature and sports; we fell in love there and decided to join our lives forever because we share the same ideal.

When we got married, we were fully committed to starting a family because we believe it is the place where we can raise our children in an environment of love, values, respect, and honesty, among others. Our main goal has always been our children, doing everything possible to give them everything they need in every aspect and to stay united.

It has been a difficult path, full of sacrifices, but always filled with love, hope, and joy. Although we are not perfect, we have always been clear that we are meant for each other and that, thanks to our great love, we have managed to overcome all the trials that life has thrown our way.

Our obligations as parents were to provide our children with proper education, housing, food, and health. Due to job instability, we were forced to move to many places over the last 20 years. At first, it wasn't too complicated because they were children whom we could take from one place to another, but as they grew older, it became more challenging to stay together. So, Nicolás studied in Colombia for both school and university, and Antonia studied part of her school in Colombia, part in Honduras, and completed her university studies in Honduras, while the parents lived between Nicaragua and Honduras, as we found job stability in these countries.

Registration is now open. You can register for online viewing for free or get a ticket to attend in person. The keynotes that are out of the United States will be broadcasting from their own country. You can also see the schedule of all the in person and online classes here:  https://www.familysearch.org/en/rootstech/schedule?day=2025-03-06

 

Telling my story with MyStories

When I heard about MyHetitage.com's new MyStories.com website and had a chance to review the website, I was impressed by its straightforward simplicity. The concept is that, after registering, you would receive one question a week for a year and at the end of the year all your answers and photos would be put in a nice hardbound book. As a test of the website before it went fully online, I submitted some stories and photos and received back a bound book. Here is a short video of my experience in opening the package.

https://youtu.be/1ZUBvYzcBnw?si=U8wIX4XywzGSfDOI

You might be able to guess my age from this video but I don't usually get too animated about anything but I do like the book and the process. In fact, I was given an account by MyHeritage and I intend to use it during the coming year. Just so you know the gift of the one year account was given after I produced the video. 

The 5 most challenging issues with the FamilySearch Family Tree

 

The FamilySearch.org Family Tree is a free, collaborative, wiki-based, universal, family tree. The Family Tree was introduced in 2013 at the RootsTech Conference in Salt Lake City, Utah. I have been actively using the Family Tree since the day it was introduced. The Family Tree has evolved over the years and I am sure that those who developed and demonstrated the Family Tree back in 2013 would be astounded at the changes. However, some of the inherent and blatant issues of the Family Tree at the time of the introduction are still with us. 

I have written about all these issues many times over the years and I have to admit that significant progress has been made on minimizing the impact of some of these issues with the Family Tree but there is still a long uphill climb to resolve these 5 core issues with the Family Tree. As I go through the issues once again, I will note if there is a partial solution in the works if that information is available. In addition, I will give examples with ID numbers so you can see for yourself what I am writing about. 

1. Revolving Door Ancestors

This is the most damaging and wasteful challenge of them all. A revolving door ancestor is one whose information is constantly changing. Here is one of the most egregious examples for a Mayflower Passenger, Francis Cooke LZ2F-MM7. 

Note the dates of the changes and if you look at this list, you will see there have been hundreds or perhaps more than a thousand changes that go on almost every day. This person, as a member of the Mayflower Passengers, has been researched for about a hundred years and there is no new information that can or should be shared with the Family Tree. All the known information is contained in the Mayflower Society Silver Books and there is no conceivable reason for all these changes. Think of the monumental amount of time that has been wasted on this and other revolving door ancestors. Those people in this revolving door category include almost all those born in New England since 1630 to about 1750 AD. These people are being extensively documented by the Great Migration Study Project from the New England Historic Genealogical Society. 

Why does FamilySearch allow this constant changing to people who are exhaustively researched?

2. Impossible Pedigrees

 The Family Tree is a source-centric tree. This means that every entry in the Family Tree should and eventually must be supported by specific historical records. So, if people are entered into the Family Tree with NO sources, adding parents and additional generations of ancestors would be nothing less that a fabrication, a counterfeit, and another massive waste of time. 

Here is one example from the Family Tree.

This person has ancestors listed back to, at least, 1045 and probably further on some lines. Because Edward Morgan does not have any sources, there is no way to know if this is the right person. To add insult to injury, Edward's father John Morgan MG6J-9NX was supposedly born in Wales and some of the sources attached are for people with the same name born in England and Virginia. 

3.  Addition of GEDCOM files

A GEDCOM file is a way of transferring information from one genealogy program to another. The acronym stands for Genealogical Data Communications. See https://gedcom.io/  GEDCOM is not a "program" or an "app." It is a standard for exchanging data. 

The FamilySearch.org Family Tree is a universal tree. When someone build a family tree (pedigree) on another program or app and if the person building the pedigree has ancestors from North America or Europe, there is a significant chance that all or part of the family tree created on a website other than the Family Tree, will already be on the Family Tree. This means that the research effort expended was a waste of time. Genealogical researchers can easily avoid this problem by doing searches on the Family Tree. 

What is a disaster is when some uploads a GEDCOM file to the FamilySearch Family Tree. From what I said about doing research is turned into creating a huge number of duplicate entries on the Family Tree. Uploaded GEDCOM files should not be allowed to a family tree open to a community such as the FamilySearch.org Family Tree. 

4. Adding People who lived before 1500 A.D.

Very few people anywhere in the world are qualified to do new and accurate historical research before 1500 A.D. This limitation goes for genealogists also. There are exceptions such as Chinese Family Books  but Europe does not have the equivalent of these records. The main limitation for European research before 1500 is that the handwriting and language both require specialized learning. The pre-1500 family lines added to the FamilySearch Family Tree always make the unsupported assumption that the poor people being researched somehow magically descend from royalty or nobility. Here is an example of an entry from one of my own ancestral lines on the Family Tree. 

None of these people show any sources for the entries. The entries are nothing more than names. If I look at the entries either from the last person in this line who has any sources attached or step back from these people to some place of reality, I find a person named Elizabeth Jones MG6J-9N1 who was supposedly born in Essex England and died in New Haven Connecticut. 

 Her father's name is John Joseph Snider G9WF-DW6 who supposedly was born in Wales and died in Wales. His wife, Elizabeth Bodenham G9WF-6RY was born in Gloucestershire. I won't go any further with these examples except to say how did Elizabeth Jones fit into the family of Snider and Bodeham?

The FamilySearch Family tree has thousands if not millions of similar entries with no sources telling us how these people could have had children in America? There always seems to be a justification based on an assumption that the child was illegitimate. 

5. Adding a large number of children to a family by surname without supporting sources. 

Here is a family that is an excellent example of this challenge. 

The children are listed as being born in North Carolina, South Carolina, Unknown, and Kentucky (before it was a state),  Who was John Sanderson who shows up in the 1790 US Census in Jones, North Carolina and how did he have children in all these places. Time to do a lot more research. 

Of course, there are a lot of other minor issues with the Family Tree but over all it does a good job of giving us a place to start doing a lot more learning and hard research work. A simple way to clear up almost all the issues with the Family Tree without impacting its integrity is to require real sources showing a parent child relationship for every entry.