Are you ready for the next big printing industry disrupter?

A newly published report, Artificial Intelligence in the Printing Industry: The Journey Begins, produced by an expert team at Alliance/NAPCO Research, kicks off an ongoing project to track AI’s adoption, use and practical applications in print.

We caught up with one member of that team, Onamica Dhar, Economist at PRINTING United Alliance and a Professional Advisor to Women in Print Alliance, to ask a few questions about the report and AI in general.

Women in Print Alliance (WPA): First, congratulations on the release of  the new Alliance/NAPCO Research report. It’s exciting to see women in print serving as thought leaders on this topic. Second, can you provide a high-level summary of how you see AI impacting the printing industry?

Onamica Dhar (OD): Thank you! It’s my pleasure to share information about both this report and about AI’s near- and long-term impact on the printing industry. AI creates some complex dynamics, but an overall summary is that AI is playing and will continue to play an increasing role in three key ways: 1) enhancing efficiency; 2) automating workflow; and 3) improving customer interaction.

WPA: Interesting. Drilling down further, what are some current practical applications in the printing industry that your team discovered during its research?

OD: I’ll share just two applications of AI that I found interesting. The first is predictive maintenance, or the idea that AI can be used to alert companies to when and how print equipment might fail. The second relates to personalized marketing campaigns, where AI can be used to analyze customer data and preferences. Both serve to enhance overall operations at printing companies.

In the report, our team also details a couple of other applications, like print production optimization that can speed up turn-around times and using ChatBots as a tool for customer support.

WPA: Anytime we see a major disruptive force in the industry, it’s often paired with some apprehension or even fear. With AI generally, we’re hearing and seeing workers in the content creation, design or marketing space voice concerns about displacement. To the women in print filling these roles currently, what can you say regarding this point?

OD: These are legitimate feelings and not dissimilar to concerns that surrounded the concept of automation in the printing industry.

I think one way to positively reframe such concerns are to recognize that utilizing AI successfully requires a human element or oversight. My colleague Cory Francer addressed this in our recent podcast by saying we could and should approach AI’s impact on specific print company functions not as technology taking over our jobs, but instead a tool that helps simplify our tasks and frees us up to focus on more strategic or creative activities.

Of course, the printing industry is still in the early adoption phase of AI, and one reason our team embarked on this ongoing research project is to monitor what impact AI could have on specific job descriptions going forward.

WPA: Women in print are busy people. Who should make the time to read this report? Women working in specific functions or segments? Or is it useful to all women in the industry?

OD: I hear you! As a mom of two young children, I have to prioritize news and research intake myself. My advice? Start by listening my teammate’s and my guest appearance on the Impressions Xchange podcast; you can do this on the go! Then, download the report, and don’t be intimated by its 32-page length. The sections are easily digestible, and a lot of the data is presented visually.

Who should read it? Honestly, every woman regardless of her role at a printing company should find this report useful.

WPA: Many women we talk to already feel behind the curve when it comes to AI. Others are just feeling overwhelmed by the “Brave New World” aspect of this new technology. Is it “too late” to jump in – and why is it critical that women in print get up to speed?

OD: Knowledge is power, and even looking over the charts and graphs can give every woman in print a baseline on how AI is currently used in the industry. I think reading this report will give women who are feeling confused or overwhelmed by the huge issue of AI a sense of control on the topic. You don’t have to learn every single thing about AI; start by learning the bite-sized chunks that apply directly to print.

And it’s definitely not too late. In fact, now is a GREAT time to start learning about AI’s impact on the printing industry. Our report title alludes to the fact that it’s still early stages for AI’s impact on print. It’s a journey and while some AI industry experts are way ahead, the vast majority of us are all starting out together now.