The exterior view of the Xiong'an Library in Xiong'an New Area, Hebei province. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

As a major cultural landmark, the library covers a total floor area of about 68,000 square meters. It is designed to hold around 1.5 million books and offers about 3,500 reading seats, according to the authorities.

It has introduced smart technologies to reshape the public reading experience, offering fully automated borrowing and returning systems. Besides, AI-powered robots serve as intelligent librarians, providing interactive inquiries and guided tours.