Michael hart said in 2004, "The mission of Project Gutenberg is simple:' Encourage the creation and distribution of e-books.' "[2]

One slogan of the project is "Knock down the barriers of ignorance". Just like the rise of public libraries in the early 20th century, volunteers in Gutenberg aim to continue to promote literacy, so as to better inherit the cultural heritage.

The operation mode of the Gutenberg Project is not centralized. For example, there is no selection strategy to specify which works to add. Volunteers only do what they are interested in or have at hand.