AI Efficiencies to Optimize Workflow from Submission to Publication: 3 Case Studies

The SSP webinar program delivers a series of highly informative, thought-provoking webinars designed to challenge and stimulate discussion. Covering timely topics and offered regularly throughout the year, our one-hour webinars are available for viewing 180 days after the live broadcast.

Avi Staiman is the founder and CEO of Academic Language Experts, an author services company dedicated to leveling the research playing field for ESL scholars. He is also the co-founder of SciWriter.ai, the first co-pilot that helps researchers supercharge their writing with responsible AI. Avi is involved in the scholarly publication community as a chef at Scholarly Kitchen, co-host of the New Books Network ‘Scholarly Communication’ Podcast, and as a reviewer for Wiley’s Learned Publishing journal. Avi is a thought leader on AI tools for research, bridging the gap between publishers and authors and how to support and empower ESL researchers. He is a core member of CANGARU, where he represents EASE in creating legislation and policy for the responsible use of AI in research. He has been a guest lecturer at NYU’s Master’s Program in Translation & Interpreting and the University of Tokyo. His essays have appeared in the Cambridge University Press Blog, The Scholarly Kitchen, Multilingual, and Times Higher Education.

Dustin Smith is the Co-founder and President of Hum, which provides AI and data intelligence solutions for publishers. For over 15 years, he’s worked at the cross-section of scholarly publishing and tech innovation. He leads Hum’s product vision, strategy and development, and oversees solutions that leverage AI to unify and activate first-party data, including Alchemist, Hum’s deep AI suite. He’s particularly passionate about helping publishers harness data to drive reader engagement, content intelligence, author/reviewer recruitment, and more.

Hong is a product and AI innovation leader in scholarly publishing and former Senior Director of AI Product & Innovation at Wiley, where he set AI vision and strategy, drive the roadmap, and delivered award-winning services that automate research and publishing workflows. He helped define Wiley’s AI ethics principles, drove innovation for the Wiley Research Exchange platform and Atypon experience platform, and led creation of Wiley’s first AI-driven papermill detection tool—now a leading integrity solution. A former head of AI R&D, he built collaborations with top labs worldwide and earned multiple AI awards, including an honorable mention for the 2024 APE Award for Innovation. He holds a PhD in 3D Modeling with AI (Aberystwyth) and an MBA in Digital Transformation (Oxford). His personal research passion is supporting publishers’ success in their transition to Open Science and helping global researchers know more, do more, and achieve more in the era of digital transformation. Hong is widely published on computer science and AI topics and presents regularly at prominent industry events. He also serves as a COPE Advisor, Scholarly Kitchen Chef, Co-Chair of ALPSP’s AI Special Interest Group, member of STM’s Future Lab, and Distinguished Expert at China’s National Key Laboratory of Knowledge Mining for Medical Journals.

Julia Kostova, PhD, is Director of Publishing and head of the US division at Frontiers, the 3rd most cited and 6th largest scholarly publisher in the world. In this role, Dr Kostova leads Frontiers’ strategy in the US with the mission of making science open, accessible, and trustworthy, supporting researchers, authors, and institutions in this transition. In her role, she is also actively engaged in science and technology policy, advocating for support for sustainable open science and investment to build trust in science. With Frontiers being a pioneer in AI in the scholarly publishing industry, Dr Kostova has spoken at leading forums and events about the myriads of ways in which this technology will transform the knowledge landscape. A 20-year veteran of the publishing industry, Dr Kostova has worked at leading publishing houses like Wiley’s Global Research Division and Oxford University Press. Dr Kostova is a strong advocate of cultivating and mentoring women executives and leaders, having held a fellowship at Women in Power at 92Y in New York City. She holds a PhD in French literature from Rutgers University, and has taught at Columbia and Rutgers Universities for over a decade.

Following Research Square's acquisition by Springer Nature in 2022, Sarah assumed the role of Vice President, AI Products. In this capacity, she's responsible for driving AI innovation, particularly through Curie, a digital writing assistant for researchers, which offers AI tools Sarah led and integrated across Research Square.