UCSF Library

What UCSF Library does

UCSF Library is the academic health sciences library of the University of California, San Francisco, a public state university. It operates as an internal unit of UCSF, providing discovery, access, preservation, and instructional services to the university's students, faculty, researchers, and clinical staff across the Parnassus, Mission Bay, ZSFG, and Fresno campuses. The library delivers its services through four physical locations (Kalmanovitz Library, FAMRI Library, The Hub, and ZSFG Library), the UC Library Search discovery platform, the Archives and Special Collections (including the HIV/AIDS Epidemic Collection, the Japanese Woodblock Print Collection, and a 15,000+ volume Rare Book Collection with 55 incunabula), the publicly accessible Industry Documents Library of tobacco and pharmaceutical corporate records, and a Makers Lab offering 3D printing, extended reality, and maker technologies that has delivered over 6,000 prints since 2020.

The underlying technology stack integrates the UC system-wide UC Library Search with licensed scholarly and clinical databases (PubMed@UCSF, Embase, Web of Science, UpToDate, Micromedex, Lexicomp, AccessMedicine, Google Scholar@UCSF), digital preservation tools (Internet Archive's Archive-It, Calisphere, HathiTrust, Google Books), and operations tooling (Springshare LibCal for room and equipment booking, Zendesk for support, Google Analytics, reCAPTCHA, and Box for digital archive transfers). The Makers Lab uses Blender and CT scan datasets to produce 3D-printed anatomical teaching models. Supporting services include Data Science and Open Scholarship (Python, R, SQL, machine learning, bioinformatics), AI Literacy and Support, scholarly communication and open access guidance, multimedia production in the Tech Commons, and an annual Artist in Residence program.

The library is funded primarily by the University of California, San Francisco, supplemented by donations, endowments, and grants, and is provided free of charge to UCSF affiliates; public visitors have limited access and pay nominal fees for printing and copying. The organization employs approximately 49 staff and is led by the University Librarian and Assistant Vice Chancellor, with directors overseeing Data Science and Open Scholarship, the Industry Documents Library, Education and Clinical Research Services, Technology Services and Strategy, and Archives and Special Collections. UCSF Library is governed under the 2022-2026 Strategic Plan, which organizes work around four initiatives: Innovative Technologies, Library as Educators, Discovery and Access to Resources, and Learning Community and Cultural Environment.

Name

UCSF Library

Legal name

UCSF Library (University of California, San Francisco Library)

Website

https://library.ucsf.edu

Company type

Private

Founded year

1873

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

UCSF Library is the academic health sciences library of the University of California, San Francisco, providing discovery, archival, clinical, and maker-technology services to UCSF students, faculty, researchers, and clinical staff across four campus locations.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Academic Library Services

NAICS

Libraries and Archives (51921), Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (6113)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Academic & Research Library Operations (College/University Libraries) (EDAEAGAB)

akta.pro secondary industry

Special Libraries (Law, Medical, Corporate, Government) Operations (EDAEAGAD)

Keywords

• Academic library services
• Health sciences library
• Scholarly research support
• Archival special collections
• Maker lab services

Headquarters

HQ city

San Francisco

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices5 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. University Funding: Primary funding from University of California San Francisco (UCSF), providing free access to library services for students, faculty, and staff
2. Donations and Endowments: Financial contributions supporting UCSF Archives, Special Collections, Adopt-a-Book program, Makers Lab, and open access initiatives
3. Industry Documents Library: Public access to tobacco and pharmaceutical industry documents advancing health research and transparency

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

UCSF Library is an academic health sciences library that provides access to scholarly databases, journals, archives, study spaces, and physical library facilities across multiple UCSF campuses. It offers specialized services including Makers Lab 3D printing, Data Science and Open Scholarship support, AI Literacy and Support, and expert research consultations for UCSF students, faculty, researchers, and clinical staff.

Product overview

UCSF Library is an academic health sciences library offering a unified platform of digital resources, physical facilities, and expert services. The core offerings include UC Library Search (discovery platform), Archives and Special Collections (rare materials and historical documents), Industry Documents Library (corporate accountability documents), and Makers Lab (3D printing and maker technologies). The library operates physical facilities at Parnassus (Kalmanovitz Library), Mission Bay (FAMRI Library and The Hub), ZSFG, and Benioff Oakland campuses. Supporting services include Data Science and Open Scholarship support, AI Literacy and Support, database access, interlibrary loan, and the Artist in Residence Program. The Tech Commons provides multimedia workstations and recording studios for instructional content creation.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• UC Library Search Unified discovery platform enabling search across the library's databases, journals, books, and archives for the UCSF community.
• Archives and Special Collections Repository of rare books, manuscripts, organizational records, artifacts, photographs, and electronic files documenting UCSF history and health sciences, including the HIV/AIDS Epidemic Collection and Japanese Woodblock Print Collection.
• Industry Documents Library Public access to corporate documents related to industries whose practices harm public health, including tobacco and pharmaceutical industry records.
• Makers Lab Creative DIY space with 3D printers, virtual reality, arts and crafts, programmable electronics, and extended reality equipment for UCSF teaching, learning, and research projects, including a 3D printing curbside service.
• Library Tech Commons Technology hub providing multimedia workstations, recording studio (CL245), and computer labs with research software for students, faculty, and staff.
• Data Science and Open Scholarship Services Expert support for data management, reproducibility, open science, Python, R, SQL, machine learning, and AI, including bioinformatics and statistics workshops, programming support, and Hacky Hour sessions.
• AI Literacy and Support Library service providing education and support for artificial intelligence tools, resources, and literacy for the UCSF community.
• Kalmanovitz Library (Parnassus) Main library at Parnassus Campus with study spaces, Makers Lab, Caffé Central, computer labs, printing/copying, music room, and Hearst Reading Room with 24/7 access.
• FAMRI Library (Mission Bay)
• The Hub at Mission Bay
• ZSFG Library
• Database Access Access to scholarly databases including PubMed@UCSF, Embase, Web of Science, UpToDate, Micromedex, Lexicomp, AccessMedicine, and Google Scholar@UCSF.
• Interlibrary Loan
• 3D Printed Heart Models for TEE Education 3D-printed heart models for echocardiography education, displaying TEE imaging views and used as teaching tools in cardiac operating rooms.
• Web Archiving Service Website capture and preservation using Archive-It service. Archives crawls and collects websites of UCSF departments and external organizations contributing to educational and research programs.

Quantifiable outcome

• 6,000+ 3D prints delivered to UCSF community since 2020
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration16 records

AI capability9 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Internet Archive (Archive-It)coreTechnology or IntegrationUCSF Archives uses Archive-It's web crawler service to capture and preserve UCSF websites and related health sciences content over time. The service automatically browses websites and saves copies of content and links, storing archived content in the Internet Archive's digital preservation repository.
• California Digital Library (Calisphere)coreTechnology or IntegrationUCSF Archives and Special Collections uses Calisphere to provide access to digitized collections including the Japanese Woodblock Print Collection, Eric Berne papers, Robert L. Day Collection, and other materials. Calisphere offers access to over 2,000,000 images, text documents, and recordings from California institutions.
• UCSF Department of Humanities and Social SciencesminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-sponsored the Intrinsic Value of Art Series zine fair event along with UC Humanities Research Institute. The department provided funding support for art programming that celebrates Bay Area BIPOC artists.
• UC Humanities Research InstituteminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnered with UCSF Library to fund the Intrinsic Value of Art Series and UCSF Zine Fair, supporting health humanities programming and community art engagement.
• Global Brain Health InstituteminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerUCSF Library's 2025 Artist in Residence Michelle Memran is a Senior Atlantic Fellow at the Global Brain Health Institute, working on dementia advocacy through collaborative storytelling.
• University of California Records Retention ScheduleminorOthersUCSF Archives follows UC system-wide records retention policies and schedules for managing institutional records transfers and disposition.
• UCSF Committee on Library & Scholarly Communication (COLASC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUniversity committee that advises on library services and scholarly communication matters, including strategic planning discussions and funding for library improvements like FAMRI classroom technology updates.
• Flight Attendant Medical Research Institute (FAMRI)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFAMRI was established as part of a class action lawsuit settlement against the tobacco industry in 1991. The library space was dedicated to FAMRI in 2008, honoring the foundation that sponsors scientific research on ailments caused by tobacco exposure.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Others

• California Digital Library (CDL) / Calisphere: UC system's digital library consortium and Calisphere access platform serve as adjacent infrastructure for digitized collections — a partner and ecosystem peer rather than a competitor.
• Internet Archive: UCSF Library partners with Internet Archive's Archive-It service for web archiving; Internet Archive is an ecosystem enabler and adjacent digital-preservation peer.

Direct peers

• Harvard Countway Library of Medicine: Harvard Medical School's flagship health sciences library, combining collections, archives, and digital services for a top-tier medical university — directly comparable in mandate and scope to UCSF Library.
• UC San Diego Biomedical Library: Another UC-system health sciences library, operating under similar governance, with comparable clinical resource access (UpToDate, PubMed), archives, and interlibrary loan infrastructure.
• NYU Health Sciences Library: NYU's health sciences library serves medical, dental, and nursing schools with similar offerings — databases, archives, makerspace-style services, and data science support.
• University of Pennsylvania Biomedical Library: Penn's biomed library supports a leading academic medical center with comparable clinical informatics, archives, and educational services for an East Coast peer institution.
• Johns Hopkins Welch Medical Library: Welch Medical Library serves Johns Hopkins' Schools of Medicine, Nursing, and Public Health with clinical decision tools, archives, and data services — a leading peer academic health sciences library.
• UCLA Louise M. Darling Biomedical Library: UCLA's health sciences library within the same University of California system, serving similar medical, nursing, and life sciences constituencies with analogous databases, archives, and instructional services.

Broad incumbents

• NIH National Library of Medicine (NLM): The largest biomedical library in the world; NLM operates PubMed/MEDLINE, ClinicalTrials.gov, and toxicology databases. It is not a direct competitor but defines the broader infrastructure UCSF Library integrates with.

Regional players

• Stanford Medicine Library: Stanford's Lane Library and medical library operations serve a peer California medical school with similar clinical, research, and teaching support mandates.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ucsf_library
• Facebookfacebook.com/ucsflibrary
• Instagraminstagram.com/ucsflibrary
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ucsf-library

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles11 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about UCSF Library