AI and Tech in Scholarly Publishing: Key Insights from our 2025 AUPresses Panel
- Alaina-Marie Chapman
- Aug 12
- 5 min read
Updated: Sep 4
On Thursday, June 12th, Virtusales hosted a panel discussion at the 2025 AUPresses Virtual Annual Meeting called From Data to Insights: Supporting Scholarly Publishing Workflows with AI and Technology. Featuring publishing experts Lily Simmons from the University of Pennsylvania Press, Jen Mellor from Manchester University Press, and Ken Brooks from Treadwell Media Group, the conversation revolved around how technology and artificial intelligence (AI) are changing the world of scholarly publishing.
The Impact of AI
Ken Brooks kicked off the discussion by explaining how AI is becoming an essential part of publishing. He compared it to major past breakthroughs like the introduction of the internet and e-books but suggested that AI might bring even bigger changes. From enhancing productivity to completely transforming job roles and workflows, AI is touching every corner of publishing—including sales, marketing, design, and distribution. According to Ken, companies are using AI to process data more efficiently and streamline their workflows, even if they are still figuring out the best way to incorporate it.
“AI has potential to be the biggest change that I've seen. [...] people are using it kind of regardless of company policy, so policy needs to keep up here. I use it pretty much every day as part of my daily activities, and my team does as well. [...] It's going to accelerate publishing cycles.” - Ken Brooks
Simplifying Complex Tasks
Our panelists highlighted that regulations like EUDR and the European Accessibility Act (EAA) are complicating publishing processes. They agreed that technology can ease this burden by automating tasks and more efficiently sharing data both internally and with external business partners.
Jen Mellor shared that the very process of adopting new technology provided unforeseen benefits, acting as a catalyst for organizational improvement.
“The onboarding of new technology and working closely with Virtusales was a really good, positive experience […] it's upskilled our staff in lots of different ways. We’re now much more engaged with our data, and have been able to interrogate and resolve loads of historic issues that were just lurking at the depths of our previous systems. It was a very healthy, worthwhile thing to do.” - Jen Mellor
With integrated systems like BiblioSuite, publishers can lighten the load on their teams, automating complex workflows, improving data quality, and freeing up time to focus on strategic tasks instead of manual processes.
Put These Insights into Practice
Ready to move from theory to action? Download our free checklist to evaluate your press' workflows, assess your technological readiness, and identify key opportunities for automation. It’s the perfect tool to guide your teams' discussion on AI and technology.
Unlocking Efficiency and Insights with Technology
Each speaker shared how technology is used at their respective presses. Lily Simmons explained how the University of Pennsylvania Press made a big shift by implementing BiblioSuite to replace siloed workflows consisting of different systems, spreadsheets, and manual data transfers. This integration allowed for the automation of metadata through ONIX scheduling and created custom data feeds tailored to specific partner requirements from distributors like CoreSource and DeGruyter to overseas printers for Print on Demand (POD) titles—enabling the team to do more with less.
“We have fewer employees than we did four years ago (due to the pandemic) but we've actually been able to expand our output by embracing new technologies.” - Lily Simmons
Jen Mellor illustrated how Manchester University Press uses technology to make smarter business decisions. With BiblioSuite at its core, the press has brought processes like sales analytics in-house, enabling informed decisions without relying on external consultants. Teams can quickly access sales data, visualize it, and tailor reports according to different roles within the company—significantly reducing the time spent on these tasks compared to past methods and third party services.
“With Biblio, we’re able to look at and visualize our sales data not just by what we have sold this month, but by subject area, the formats we’re selling in different places, geographical and regional sales, and deeper dives into specific series, lists and types of customer—without it being a massive undertaking or taking weeks to get these insights by outsourcing! [...] You can slice and dice it in all sorts of ways, making the data much more accessible, much more at your fingertips, and our team is definitely making use of that.” - Jen Mellor
Ken Brooks shared practical examples of AI tools like Gemini Deep Research, which analyzes market trends to help publishers build topical blurbs, keywords, and prospective author lists. He also offered a more advanced use case: creating AI “agent personas” to simulate how different buyers, such as a librarian or a professor, might react to a book proposal. These tools gather and summarize data from numerous online channels, offering publishers valuable snapshots of what is happening in the industry.
“It's like having a research department at your beck and call for free.” - Ken Brooks
Looking to the Future
Each panelist expressed optimism about AI's future role in publishing. Lily mentioned that Penn Press is currently testing generative AI features within BiblioSuite to produce marketing copy and keywords, ensuring data security through BiblioSuite’s ‘walled garden’ approach. This closed-system methodology is critical as it prevents proprietary content from being exposed to public AI models, addressing a key concern for publishers regarding data privacy and intellectual property. Jen too shared Manchester University Press’ plan to use AI for metadata enrichment and fast-tracking EPUB transformations. Both reiterated that while AI offers immense potential, human oversight remains crucial to achieving the best results.
“When we tested batch keyword generation [in BiblioSuite], it was great. We went from having maybe two keywords to 15, which will really amplify backlist titles. We are definitely looking to implement this imminently.” - Lily Simmons
Another key topic was the environmental impact of AI technologies. The panelists acknowledged that while AI provides substantial efficiencies, it carries a cost in terms of energy consumption, urging publishers to carefully consider the balance between technological advancement and environmental responsibility.
Your Checklist for a More Efficient Future
We've distilled the key takeaways from this expert discussion into a practical checklist. Download the PDF to get a clear, structured guide for evaluating your press' use of AI, data, and technology to boost operational efficiency.
Final Thoughts
As the panel wrapped up the conversation, they encouraged publishers to embrace AI and technology to streamline operations and make smarter, more informed business decisions. As a valuable tool proven to transform workflows and enhance efficiency across scholarly publishing, Virtusales' BiblioSuite is ready to support these initiatives.
Insights from the panel highlighted that while challenges exist, the thoughtful and responsible integration of AI and tech promises a brighter, more efficient future for scholarly publishing. If you are interested in harnessing technology to enhance your publishing practices, get in touch to learn how BiblioSuite can optimize your workflows and boost productivity across teams.