Led by Dr Daniel Mertens (University of Ulm, www.scientistsneedmore.de), this interactive session explores practical ways to integrate AI tools into your academic writing workflow. With increasing pressure to publish and limited time, AI-powered tools can offer powerful support but only when used strategically and responsibly.
Designed for researchers who are curious about how AI can assist with idea generation, structuring, editing, or literature organisation, this session will offer demonstrations, ethical considerations, and recommended practices.
Part of the Edinburgh Writing Retreat, this workshop is now open to all academic staff with research responsibilities. The presenter will join online, but Writing Retreat participants will be attending in person in SR214, where other registered attendees are also welcome (space limited to 10). Alternatively, you can join online. The session will be recorded and shared.

Aim:
To introduce practical, ethical, and effective ways of using AI tools to support academic writing and research productivity.

Objectives:
By the end of this workshop, participants will be able to:

• Understand the landscape of AI tools relevant to academic writing
• Evaluate the benefits and limitations of using AI in scholarly communication
• Identify where AI can assist (e.g., brainstorming, outlining, paraphrasing, editing)
• Apply AI tools to streamline specific writing tasks, while preserving academic integrity