The idea
You have probably asked ChatGPT or Gemini a question recently. If you asked it about UAMS, it had to figure out what UAMS is and which part of our website had the right answer. It usually guessed.
AI Wayfinding is a set of small files we put on our websites so the AI does not have to guess. The files say: this site is the Cancer Institute, it covers these topics, and if someone asks about something else, here is where to send them.
Our hospitals use painted floor lines, color-coded signs, and front-desk staff so patients find the right department. AI Wayfinding does the same thing for our websites, for a new kind of visitor: automated tools.
How it works: three small files
Every UAMS web property carries three small text files that tell AI tools what the site is, what it covers, and where to send users for the right next step.
The gatekeeper: robots.txt
The security desk that decides which AI tools are allowed to read each section of a site.
The handshake: llms.txt
A short, AI-readable summary that introduces the site and points to the most important content for answering questions.
The directory: llms-full.txt
A deeper content index that tells AI tools how to route questions, what to cite, and when to redirect users to a more appropriate UAMS site.
200+ UAMS web properties
This work applies to every public-facing UAMS website under Web Services governance, from uamshealth.com to individual college and department sites. The scale is the point. A patient asking about UAMS could land on any of them, and AI tools need a consistent way to understand each one.
What is expected of you
Probably nothing, today. The Wayfinding files are maintained by Web Services. As a content editor or department web steward, you will not write or edit them directly.
What does matter: when your department’s scope changes, when you launch a new program, or when a provider joins or leaves, let Web Services know. That information needs to be reflected in our pages, and by extension in the files that tell AI tools what we cover.
You may also hear a few terms in passing. The triad is the three files treated as a group. The pillar is a major UAMS website like medicine.uams.edu or cancer.uams.edu; your department probably lives under one. The plugin is the software inside our website platform that manages the files; super admins use it, content editors do not touch it.
See also
Other pages and posts in the AI Wayfinding series.
AI Wayfinding at UAMS (hub)
The main landing page for AI Wayfinding at UAMS, with links to everything in one place.
Visit the hub
The strategic view
Why UAMS is investing in AI Wayfinding, what it costs, and what leadership may be asked about it.
Read the strategic view
Inside the file triad: a technical deep-dive
A longer narrative walkthrough of how the three files work together, with examples from UAMS properties.
Read the deep-dive