Nature Portfolio AI Policy

Nature Portfolio's AI policy is the set of editorial rules, published on nature.com and applied across Nature, its sister research and Nature Reviews journals, Scientific Reports, and other Nature Portfolio titles, governing generative AI use in submitted manuscripts. A submission is treated as compliant only if: (1) no AI tool (large language model, chatbot, or image generator) is listed as an author or co-author, since authorship requires accountability that a tool cannot hold; (2) any substantive use of an LLM or other generative AI tool in preparing the manuscript is disclosed in the Methods section (or an equivalent alternative section for article types without one) — minor AI-assisted copyediting of already-written text does not require disclosure; and (3) no AI-generated or AI-substantially-modified image, video, or figure is used, except in the narrow case of a piece specifically about AI itself, reviewed case-by-case by the editor, or artwork sourced through an agency with a contractual chain that makes its provenance legally clear.

ByCASRAI Editorial Board

· Last updated 23 Jul 2026

Worked examples

Is an instance

A manuscript's Methods section states: 'We used ChatGPT (OpenAI, GPT-4) to help draft an initial summary of related-work paragraphs, which the authors subsequently verified, edited, and take full responsibility for.' The tool is not listed as an author.

Is an instance

A submission to a Nature Portfolio journal includes a schematic diagram the authors generated with an AI image tool to illustrate a hypothetical mechanism; because AI-generated images are not permitted outside the narrow editor-reviewed exceptions, the authors instead commission or hand-draw the figure themselves.

Looks similar, but isn't

Not an instance

Listing 'ChatGPT' as a co-author on the byline — Nature Portfolio (like ICMJE and COPE) rejects this outright, since AI tools cannot take accountability for a work's integrity or give consent to be listed.

Not an instance

Using an AI writing tool only to polish grammar and phrasing of the authors' own already-drafted sentences — this counts as AI-assisted copyediting and does not require Methods disclosure under the policy.

The Nature Portfolio AI policy is Springer Nature’s editorial framework, published at nature.com and applied across Nature, the Nature Research and Nature Reviews journal families, Scientific Reports, and other Nature Portfolio titles, for how authors, reviewers, and editors may use generative AI tools in connection with a submission. It sits inside the broader landscape of publisher AI policies (see CASRAI’s guide to journal and publisher policies on generative AI in manuscripts and the AI in Peer Review: Publisher Policy Comparison), but it is worth documenting on its own because Nature Portfolio’s stance on AI-generated images is notably stricter than most competing publishers.

No AI tool can be listed as an author

Nature Portfolio does not permit large language models such as ChatGPT, or any other AI tool, to be credited as an author or co-author on a paper. The stated rationale tracks the same logic used across scholarly publishing generally (ICMJE, COPE, and most major publishers take an equivalent position): authorship carries accountability for the accuracy and integrity of the work and the ability to give consent to the final version, and an AI tool cannot hold either. This is a bright-line rule, not a case-by-case judgment.

Disclosure requirement: Methods section, not just Acknowledgments

Where an author does make substantive use of an LLM or comparable generative AI tool in preparing a manuscript, Nature Portfolio requires that use to be documented in the Methods section (or, for article types that don’t carry a Methods section, in a suitable equivalent part of the paper). This is a narrower and more specific requirement than simply thanking a tool in the Acknowledgments, and it mirrors the general convention captured in CASRAI’s generative-AI disclosure statement entry: a fixed, findable location for AI-use disclosure rather than something buried or omitted. Nature Portfolio explicitly exempts routine AI-assisted copyediting of an author’s own already-written text (grammar and phrasing polish) from this disclosure requirement — the line is drawn at substantive content generation or analysis, not at any AI tool use whatsoever.

AI-generated images: a near-blanket prohibition

Nature Portfolio’s position on AI-generated or AI-substantially-modified images, video, and other artwork is markedly stricter than its text-disclosure rule. The publisher states it is unable to permit AI-generated images and video in its journals, citing unresolved legal and provenance issues around image-generation tools. The narrow exceptions are: content that is itself the direct subject of a piece specifically about AI (reviewed case-by-case by the editor), and artwork sourced from agencies with a contractual relationship establishing the image was created in a legally acceptable way. Separately, non-generative AI or machine-learning tools used to manipulate, combine, or enhance an existing figure (rather than generate new imagery outright) must be disclosed in the relevant figure caption for case-by-case editorial review — this is a distinct, lighter-touch category from generative image creation, which is essentially not permitted at all.

Why this matters for authors submitting to Nature Portfolio journals

The practical consequence is that authors should not assume a generative-AI image policy that is permissive elsewhere (some publishers allow disclosed AI-generated figures with permission) will carry over to a Nature Portfolio title. An illustration, schematic, or graphical abstract created with an AI image generator that would pass review at another journal may need to be redrawn, commissioned, or otherwise sourced without generative AI before submission to Nature, a Nature-branded journal, or Scientific Reports.

Nature Portfolio has stated it expects to keep reviewing and updating this policy as the underlying technology and legal landscape evolve, consistent with how most major scholarly publishers are treating generative AI as a fast-moving policy area rather than a settled one.

Related terms

Generative-AI disclosure statement — the general convention this policy’s Methods-disclosure requirement is an instance of.
AI in peer review — covers the separate question of AI tool use by reviewers and editors, not just authors.
AI image generation

Use in your systems

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