The KB, National Library of the Netherlands, is not just another national library. Besides the fact that it holds the IFLA Headquarters and that it is partner to many international organizations, it aims to be a frontrunner in library innovation. Driven by the power of the written word, the KB furthers intellectual development, proficiency and creativity and seeks collaboration with partners in the domains of public libraries, cultural heritage institutuions and academia. We do this by creating, innovating and sharing knowledge in a strong network and bringing the latest technology to the use of the widest possible audience. In this article on the technological future of libraries Martijn Kleppe, Lotte Wilms and Erik Boekesteijn show how the KB employs two strategies to implement innovations on both the local as well as the national level. On the one hand the KB supports innovation in local public libraries with their “From Idea to Initiative” program. On the other hand the KB aims to integrate state-of-the- art computer science techniques in their services for the users of the National Library. They describe a concrete example of such an implementation and will conclude their article with reflections on the lessons learned from both initiatives and outline next steps.