Aug 17, 2026 · 9 min
AI’s next advantage may be hidden in paper archives
Ep 55: Ai4 Podcast - Turning 35 Years of Paper Archives into AI Training Data | Dilo Wijesuriya, ARC
Organizations may gain more from making existing records usable than from simply adopting newer AI models.
- 1ARC uses proprietary OCR to extract data accurately from wide-format architectural and engineering documents.
- 2Security, compliance, and cloud choices shape how organizations can turn sensitive archives into usable AI data.
- 3Digitization does not erase the ethical case for preserving unique books and historically significant physical materials.
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The discussion distinguishes replaceable book reprints from unique or historically significant originals that should not be destroyed after digitization.
The brief
At EIFL, Sam Cooper speaks with Dilo Wijesuriya of ARC Document Solutions about turning decades of paper archives into accurate, AI-ready information.
ARC’s proprietary OCR is designed for wide-format materials such as architectural and engineering drawings, where ordinary document conversion can miss crucial detail.
The conversation moves from HIPAA-related capabilities and security certifications to cloud options, showing that useful archival data must also be protected and manageable.
Paper remains important across engineering, construction, architecture, healthcare, facilities, communications, and AI, even as organizations continue shifting toward digital systems.
The sharpest ethical question concerns destroying physical books: replaceable reprints may differ from unique or historically significant originals that deserve preservation.
Wijesuriya’s broader case is that AI’s durable advantage may come from unlocking information already trapped in archives, not merely adopting newer models.
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