Digital intelligence poses opportunities and challenges to education, say experts in the sector, Yang Yang reports.

As digital technology, especially artificial intelligence, quickly advances, it poses great challenges to the worldwide publishing industry while providing new methods, tools and paths for its development.

At the 2024 Beijing International Book Fair last month, domestic and foreign publishers gathered to share their experiences and ideas at the fair's 2024 International Publishing Industry Forum themed "Digital Intelligence Empowers Education Publishing and International Cooperation".

Since 2016, the forum, jointly organized by the Publisher Association of China, the International Publishers Association and China Publishing Group, has held eight editions during the Beijing International Book Fair and the London Book Fair, attracting more than 1,000 publishing professionals from more than 40 countries and regions.

The theme of this year's forum is highly enlightening for the development of our publishing industry as it stands at a critical crossroads, particularly evident in China, says Huang Zhijian, chairman of China Publishing Group.

People's reading and consumption habits, book distribution channels and marketing methods, as well as the industry's competitive landscape and growth drivers, have all undergone significant changes, he says.

"Digital intelligence technology has become an unavoidable choice," Huang says.