Libraries & Librarians

Book Industry Study Group (BISG) and BookNet Canada Release 2026 Report on AI Use Across the North American Book Industry

September 29, 2026

The Book Industry Study Group (BISG) and BookNet Canada have released AI Use Across the North American Book Industry 2026, the second annual report examining how publishing professionals and organizations across the U.S. and Canada are using—and thinking about—AI.

Drawing on 771 responses, this year’s report provides an opportunity to look beyond a single snapshot and begin tracking how AI adoption, attitudes, policies, and concerns are changing over time.

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An Industry Moving Toward More Structured AI Use
One of the clearest changes from 2025 is happening at the organizational level.

In 2026, 63% of respondents said their organization is using AI, up from 48% in 2025. Individual use moved in the opposite direction, falling from 46% to 38%. Organization size also matters: 88% of organizations with more than 100 employees reported using AI.

Adoption does not necessarily mean unrestricted use. The most common organizational approach is to encourage AI within controlled workflows or for specific tasks, while 49% of respondents said their organization now has an official AI policy or guidelines, up from 31% in 2025.

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Concerns Remain High
Greater organizational adoption has not diminished concerns about AI.

Copyright remains a leading issue, cited by 86% of respondents. Concerns about potential impacts on creators, environmental sustainability, legal liability, security, and publishing career pathways also remain significant or have increased since 2025.

Trust is another major theme. 89% of respondents expressed concern about the accuracy of AI-generated information, while the same percentage were concerned about AI-generated books—including fraudulent or low-quality content—flooding major retail platforms. Concerns about protecting authors and creators, disclosure to consumers, and the ability to distinguish AI-generated, AI-assisted, and human-created work were also high.

Taken together, the findings suggest that the industry’s conversation is moving beyond simply asking whether AI is being used. Increasingly, the questions are how and if it can be used responsibly, where its use is appropriate, and how publishing’s values can be protected as the technology evolves.