ADVANCED MATERIALS & PROCESSES | NOVEMBER 2026 48 tools become more capable and more widely accessible, researchers, students, reviewers, editors, and publishers must consider not only what these technologies can do, but also how they should be used responsibly. The panel, which includes several ASM journal editors, will discuss how AI is changing research and publication workflows, where it can strengthen scholarly communication, and where human expertise remains essential. They will also consider how to prepare students and researchers to evaluate AI-generated content and use these tools while protecting the integrity of the scientific record. KEY TAKEAWAYS The panelists then provided their perspective on how AI is impacting current and future journal publishing. This summary reflects the key points from their discussion. MATERIALS RESEARCH: • Authors should scrutinize any information or preliminary analysis generated from AI for validity and accuracy. • Authors should be cautious and judicious in using AI. • Authors should be very detailed in their prompts to define the scope of the task. • AI can be used in analyzing data sets, but any findings need to be reviewed and validated by the author. • Many students and early-career researchers successfully use AI for literature review and improving their English grammar. • Student researchers have found that AI is not helpful in situations involving newer, speculative research or when data is not uniform. • Universities can help students by teaching them how to use AI responsibly. • Some universities are asking students to create an AI agent that is well-versed in the equipment and parameters of their project; then it can be used more precisely. • Some professors are reverting to administering tests with pen and paper or via oral exams to confirm the acquisition of knowledge by students. • Professors can lead by example in modeling the proper use of AI in their research and publications. MANUSCRIPT PREPARATION: • The use of AI to improve grammar, especially in the case of authors who are not native English- language speakers, is an acceptable use of the tool. In many cases, this can improve the author’s chances of getting published by making their work more polished and easier to understand and validate. • Authors can ask AI to do a literature review to find reputable scientific sources. • AI can sometimes invent references. Every reference citation must be checked by a human. If the citation includes a Digital Object Identifier (DOI), the link should be followed to ensure that it resolves to a source that matches the citation. • Presenting a manuscript that is not the author’s own work is plagiarism. • Authors should be transparent by including a disclosure in the Methods or Acknowledgments section that states how AI was used for the paper. Dr. Elizabeth Hoffman, FASM, serves as moderator of the session. ASM International publishes a suite of journals. ASM Past President Judith Todd, FASM, addresses the panel during the Q&A.
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