As part of ASI’s continuing commitment to excellence in indexing, ASI has formed a committee to investigate potential impacts of AI on indexing.
The committee’s tests indicate that AI tools based on large language models (LLMs), such as ChatGPT and Claude, do not produce viable book indexes, either in whole or in part. The resulting indexes fail in terms of completeness (providing the reader access to all substantive information), navigability (guiding the reader to subtopics and related topics), and accuracy (containing only correct information and reflecting the author’s terminology). They require extensive review and correction by a human, which is almost always more time-consuming and costly than working with a professional indexer from the start.
We recognize the desire to have good indexes quickly and cheaply. However, AI is not currently capable of producing even adequate indexes. High-quality indexes that meet reader needs and expectations still require the fine-grained human judgment of a professional indexer.
Thus, at this time, we recommend AI-generated indexes not be used in books.
For more details, see our white paper. You can also see specific recommendations for authors and editors; for publishers; and for indexers.
ASI remains committed to monitoring developments and to updating this statement and the white paper as technology advances, as part of our mission to help indexers, authors, and publishers make informed, forward-looking decisions about the role of AI in indexing.
Recommendations for authors and editors
Recommendations for publishers
This statement was posted September 29, 2025.