Environment


AI: PRINTING FRIEND OR FOE?


WITH AI IN MORE AND MORE


CONVERSATIONS, AND NOT ALL OF THEM POSITIVE, ASSISTANT EDITOR, ANA LAMBERT, INVESTIGATES HOW THE INDUSTRY CAN UTILISE AI SUSTAINABLY.


With how automated the print industry is becoming, you may not realise that you are using AI until you are told your software or machine relies on it. Though still relatively new in the printing industry, but with the right implementation and sustainable practices, AI will become a useful tool for the industry among all areas.


WHAT IS ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE? Artificial intelligence refers to computer systems that are capable of performing tasks that typically require human intelligence, such as reasoning, learning, decision-making and perception.


It encompasses a wide-range of technologies, including machine learning (ML), deep learning (DL) and natural language processing (NLP). For the printing industry, for those pieces of software or machinery that were to incorporate AI into its systems, would use ML, as this subset of AI involved training algorithms on data to make predictions or decisions without being explicitly programmed. For instance, AI’s ML embedded into a printer could


mean fewer errors would be made, including better printing quality, more control over the print heads and utilising the media used more.


THE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT OF AI AI is a driving force in technology prowess and innovation. This is also applicable for the machinery and software that the print industry uses.


26 | February/March 2026


However, this usage of AI, even unconsciously, does affect the environment, as a report by Goldman Sachs identified that a ChatGPT query needs nearly 10 times more electricity than a Google search does. However, depending on that software utilising it, AI isn’t


always so environmentally damaging. The print industry, in its infancy of using AI can adapt its practices of it – along with printing processes – to create a more sustainable industry as a whole.


WHAT DOES AI DO FOR THE PRINT INDUSTRY? The print industry doesn’t necessarily rely on AI as a single entity, for instance how the cyber security industry does, though it is a useful tool to be incorporated into existing systems, machinery and processes. As the industry expands its horizons, so too is AI within it. AI does not stop at the design stage, but continues through to productions and warehousing, creating more efficiency, creativity and individuality. Within the industry AI is already managing workflows


as well. This was seen at drupa 2024, software tools that can automatically check and calculate inquiries, monitor processes and make inventory management easier, along with leading to less machine downtime. A company that is providing these AI-driven processes is Clarity Software, who provides the digital backbone for thousands of print and signage businesses across the UK.


By automating the workflow from estimation to production, the system is designed to create a ‘right first time’ culture.


In the context of sustainability, Clarity’s role is to use data and increasingly intelligent algorithms to minimise the two biggest contributors to the industry’s carbon footprint: material waste and unnecessary energy consumption.


AI is not just about generating content; it is about optimising the physical production process to ensure resources are used as efficiently as possible and Clarity


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