Peer Review Week (PRW) 2025 will take place from 15–19 September, highlighting the role of peer review in safeguarding research quality and integrity. The chosen theme, “Rethinking Peer Review in the AI Era,” reflects growing global attention on how artificial intelligence is reshaping the peer review landscape and the broader scholarly publishing ecosystem.
The theme was selected through a two-stage process led by the PRW Steering Committee. Almost 30 ideas were submitted and consolidated into four categories, after which a global poll attracted 894 valid votes from researchers, editors, and publishing professionals. The final choice demonstrates a strong community focus on both the potential benefits and the ethical challenges that AI presents for peer review.
The committee explained that the theme is intended as a collective call to examine how artificial intelligence intersects with research integrity, reviewer accountability, and transparency in publishing. The objective is to encourage the community to think critically about how peer review should evolve in a technological environment that is increasingly shaped by AI.
PRW 2025 will explore key questions such as how AI can support rather than undermine reviewer integrity, what ethical guidelines should govern its use, how reviewers can be trained in responsible adoption of AI tools, and which elements of peer review should remain uniquely human.
The selection of this year’s theme generated substantial global participation. Asia recorded the highest level of engagement, while Africa and Europe also contributed strongly, alongside significant input from the Americas and Oceania. This diversity of participation underscores the worldwide relevance of AI in scholarly communication.
As AI tools become more deeply embedded in editorial workflows — from plagiarism detection and reviewer selection to screening and evaluation — the scholarly community is being asked to reconsider foundational aspects of research validation. The steering committee emphasized that AI must be developed and adopted in ways that are trustworthy, reliable, and critically applied, rather than treated simply as generative tools. They noted that one of the most valuable outcomes of integration could be transforming the reviewer experience by making the process more efficient and engaging.
Committee members also stressed that the debate has moved beyond whether AI should be used at all. Its presence in publishing is now a reality, making it essential to focus on how peer review can be reimagined to incorporate technological support while preserving the human dimensions of judgment and critical evaluation.
The week-long program will include webinars and panel discussions on AI policy, peer review ethics, and evolving review models, along with blog posts, articles, videos, podcasts, workshops, and community events designed to build awareness and literacy around AI use in peer review. Participation is open to publishers, institutions, researchers, librarians, students, and technologists, with activities intended to foster collaboration across disciplines and geographies.
The PRW Steering Committee stated that Peer Review Week is not only a celebration but also a platform to raise awareness, broaden participation, and inspire change. The committee invited the global community to take part in shaping the future of peer review with responsibility, integrity, and foresight.
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