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In scholarly publishing, artificial intelligence chatbots (AICs)—advanced conversational programs—are emerging as generative artificial intelligence (AI) tools that can support the peer review process by automating tasks, such as identifying methodological flaws, verifying references, and improving language clarity. These tools hold potential to enhance efficiency, reduce reviewer workload, and address inconsistencies in peer review quality. However, their integration also raises significant challenges, including concerns about reliability, ethical implications, and transparency in decision-making. Peer review, a critical component of scholarly publishing, is already under strain due to increasing demands on reviewers and longstanding issues such as variability in review quality and potential biases. AICs have been proposed as tools to assist and augment the peer review process, for example, by ensuring clarity, completeness, and logical stringency of content. However, little is known about how peer reviewers perceive their role, utility, and potential impact. This study will conduct an international cross-sectional survey to assess peer reviewers’ attitudes and perceptions towards AICs in the peer review process. The survey aims to explore reviewers’ familiarity with AI, perceived benefits and challenges, ethical concerns, and anticipated future roles for AICs in peer review. Findings will provide insights to guide the development of policies and best practices for the ethical and effective integration of AICs in peer review.