1. Preamble and Scope

The rapid advancement of Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) technologies, including large language models (LLMs) such as ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude, and Copilot, as well as image-generation tools such as DALL·E and Midjourney, has introduced transformative possibilities and significant challenges for academic publishing.
Future Energy (FUEN) recognizes that GenAI tools, when used responsibly and transparently, can support researchers in literature synthesis, language editing, and manuscript preparation. At the same time, the journal is committed to upholding the highest standards of research integrity, originality, and transparency.
This policy governs the use of GenAI across all stages of the publication process at Future Energy, including authors' manuscript preparation, reviewers' peer review, and editors' editorial decision-making. 

2. Definitions

For the purposes of this policy, the following definitions apply:

Term	Definition
Generative AI (GenAI)	AI systems capable of autonomously generating text, images, code, data, or other content in response to user prompts. Examples: ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude, Copilot, DALL·E, Midjourney.
AI-Assisted Tools	Software that uses AI to assist with specific bounded tasks, such as grammar checking (Grammarly), reference management, or plagiarism detection. These are subject to narrower disclosure requirements.
Manuscript Preparation	All activities involved in writing, editing, structuring, and formatting a manuscript prior to submission, including drafting text, generating figures, and organizing references.
Substantial Use	Use of GenAI to generate or substantially rewrite complete sentences, paragraphs, sections, abstracts, figures, or data tables. Distinct from minor grammar or spell-check assistance.

 

3. GenAI and Authorship

GenAI tools and AI systems cannot be listed as authors or co-authors of any manuscript submitted to Future Energy. This position is consistent with the standards established by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE), the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), the World Association of Medical Editors (WAME), Elsevier, Springer Nature, and all major academic publishers.
Authorship carries responsibilities, including accountability for the accuracy, integrity, and originality of the work; the ability to approve the final submitted version; and legal and ethical responsibility for the content, which can only be attributed to human individuals.
Note: AI tools cannot consent to submission, respond to post-publication queries, accept responsibility for errors, or fulfill any of the duties that authorship entails. Any attempt to list a GenAI tool as an author or co-author will result in manuscript rejection.

4. Policy for Authors

4.1 Acceptable Uses

Future Energy permits the use of GenAI tools in manuscript preparation for the following purposes, provided that all use is disclosed in accordance with Section 5:

• Language and readability assistance: Grammar correction, spell-checking, improving sentence clarity and flow, and adjusting writing style for English-language accessibility.
• Literature synthesis support: Identifying relevant themes or summarizing existing literature — provided all sources are independently verified by the author before citation.
• Formatting assistance: Structuring references, adjusting citation style, organizing headings, and improving document layout.
• Ideation and brainstorming: Exploring research directions, generating outlines, or discussing methodological options — provided the intellectual content and conclusions are the authors' own.

Note: AI-assisted improvements to human-generated text (e.g., readability, grammar, and style) are permitted. The autonomous generation of substantive intellectual content, arguments, or conclusions is not.

4.2  Prohibited Uses

The following uses of GenAI are strictly prohibited and will be treated as research misconduct:

• Data fabrication or falsification: Using GenAI to generate, modify, or fabricate experimental results, datasets, statistical outputs, or research findings.
• Reference hallucination: Inserting AI-generated references that were not independently consulted or verified. Authors must verify all cited sources.
• Autonomous content generation: Submitting manuscripts where the substantive intellectual content, including arguments, analysis, conclusions, or novel contributions, was primarily generated by a GenAI tool rather than authored by a human.
• Image and figure manipulation: Using GenAI to create, alter, enhance, obscure, or fabricate figures, graphs, microscopy images, or other scientific illustrations (see Section 4.4).
• Plagiarism via AI: Using AI-generated text without disclosure, or using AI to paraphrase previously published work in a manner that conceals its origin.
• Authorship attribution: Listing any GenAI tool as an author, co-author, or contributor.

4.3  Author Responsibilities

Authors who use GenAI tools in manuscript preparation are fully responsible for:

• Carefully reviewing and verifying the accuracy, comprehensiveness, and impartiality of all AI-generated content, including checking all cited references independently.
• Ensuring the manuscript represents their authentic, original intellectual contribution and reflects their own analysis, interpretation, and ideas.
• Verifying that use of any GenAI tool does not violate data privacy, confidentiality, intellectual property rights, or the terms of service of the tool itself.
• Ensuring that no confidential, proprietary, or personally identifiable data has been uploaded to any public GenAI platform.

4.4  Visual Content Policy

Future Energy does not permit the use of GenAI tools to create or alter images, figures, graphs, microscopy outputs, or graphical abstracts submitted as part of a manuscript. This prohibition includes:

• Enhancing, obscuring, moving, removing, or introducing features within scientific images or figures.
• Generating images or visual data from non-verifiable or AI-synthesized sources.
• Creating graphical abstracts, cover art, or supplementary visuals using image-generation AI.

The sole exception is when AI or AI-assisted tools are a formally described component of the research design or methodology (e.g., AI-assisted imaging in computational energy modeling or simulation visualization). In such cases, the Methods section must include a full description of the tool name, version, parameters, and how the AI was used.

5. Disclosure Requirements

Authors who use GenAI tools in any substantial aspect of manuscript preparation must include a dedicated Generative AI Disclosure statement immediately preceding the References section. This statement must specify:

• The name and version of the GenAI tool(s) used.
• The purpose for which the tool was used (e.g., grammar editing, literature summary, formatting).
• The extent of use (e.g., limited to abstract language editing; used throughout the manuscript for readability).
• A confirmation that the authors reviewed and edited all AI-generated content and take full responsibility for the published work.

Example 1: "During the preparation of this manuscript, the authors used ChatGPT (GPT-4, OpenAI) for grammar correction and English language editing of the Introduction and Discussion sections. All intellectual content, data analysis, and conclusions were developed solely by the authors. The authors reviewed and edited all AI-assisted text and take full responsibility for the final published work."

Example 2: "No Generative AI tools were used in the preparation of this manuscript."

Disclosure of AI use for grammar and spelling checking only (equivalent to tools such as Microsoft Word spell-check or Grammarly for basic corrections) is encouraged but not mandatory, provided no substantive content was generated.

6. Policy for Peer Reviewers

Manuscripts submitted to Future Energy are confidential documents. Reviewers must treat all submitted manuscripts, associated data, and author communications with strict confidentiality throughout and after the review process.

6.1  Confidentiality Requirement

Reviewers must not upload any submitted manuscript, or any part thereof, to any external GenAI platform. This prohibition applies without exception, for any purpose, including language correction of the review report. Uploading a confidential manuscript to a public LLM may:

• Violate the intellectual property rights and priority claims of the submitting authors.
• Breach data privacy obligations if the manuscript contains identifiable information.
• Contravene the terms and conditions of Future Energy's review agreement.

6.2  Scientific Review

The scientific evaluation of a manuscript, including the assessment of novelty, methodology, data quality, conclusions, and contribution to the field, must be conducted solely by the designated human reviewer. GenAI tools must not be used to assist with scientific review or to draft review comments, as they may produce incorrect, incomplete, or biased assessments.

6.3  Reviewer Disclosure

If a reviewer uses a GenAI tool for a permitted, non-analytical task (for example, checking the grammar of their own written review after completing it without uploading the manuscript), they must disclose this to the Editor-in-Chief at the time of submission of the review. The review will proceed at the Editor's discretion.

6.4  Reporting Suspected Misuse

Reviewers who identify evidence suggesting undisclosed or inappropriate use of GenAI by submitting authors, including hallucinated references, statistically improbable text patterns, or fabricated data, should report their concerns to the editorial team via fuen@fupubco.com.

7. Policy for Editors

Editors handling submissions to Future Energy are bound by the same confidentiality requirements as reviewers. Editors must not upload submitted manuscripts, decision letters, peer review reports, or any confidential author communications to external GenAI platforms.
All editorial decisions, including desk rejection, acceptance, request for revision, and rejection after review, must be made by human editors on the basis of human judgment. GenAI must not be used as a substitute for editorial assessment.
Editors may use AI-assisted tools developed or licensed by the journal's publishing system for administrative functions such as plagiarism screening, duplicate submission detection, and reviewer matching, provided these tools comply with all applicable data privacy and confidentiality requirements.

8. Consequences of Policy Violations

Violations of this policy constitute publication misconduct and will be handled in accordance with Future Energy's Publication Ethics Policy and the COPE guidelines for handling misconduct. The following actions may be taken depending on the severity and stage of the violation:

Stage	Potential Action
Under review	Manuscript returned to author for revision or rejection, with written explanation.
Post-acceptance (pre-publication)	Withdrawal of acceptance pending investigation; possible rejection.
Post-publication	Formal retraction with public notice; notification to all co-authors.
Repeated or severe violations	Permanent ban from submission to Future Energy; notification to institutional ethics board and/or funding agencies as appropriate.

 

9. AI Content Detection

Future Energy reserves the right to use AI-detection tools as part of its manuscript screening process. Detection tool outputs will be used as an indicator for further editorial review rather than as a sole basis for rejection, given the known limitations and variability of current detection technology.
Manuscripts flagged by detection tools will be reviewed by the editorial team, and authors may be asked to provide clarification or supplementary documentation. Unexplained discrepancies between declared AI use and detected patterns may be treated as grounds for misconduct investigation.

10. Policy Review and Updates

Future Energy acknowledges that GenAI technology and the norms governing its use in academic publishing are evolving rapidly. This policy will be reviewed by the Editorial Board at a minimum once per year, and updated as necessary to reflect changes in:

• Industry standards from COPE, ICMJE, STM, Elsevier, Springer Nature, and other major publishers.
• Regulatory developments in relevant jurisdictions.
• Emerging best practices within the energy research community.

All policy revisions will be dated, and the version history will be maintained on the journal website. Authors, reviewers, and editors will be notified of material changes.

11. Alignment with International Standards

This policy has been developed in alignment with the following international frameworks and guidelines:

• Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE): Authorship and AI tools position statement (2023, updated 2024).
• International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE): Recommendations on the use of AI-assisted technologies in manuscript preparation (2023).
• World Association of Medical Editors (WAME): Policy statement on ChatGPT and chatbots in scientific publishing (2023).
• Elsevier: Generative AI policies for journals (updated September 2025).
• Springer Nature: Tools, technologies and publishing integrity (2024).
• STM Association: Generative AI principles and best practices (2023–2025).

12. Contact and Queries

Authors, reviewers, or editors with questions regarding the application of this policy to a specific submission or use case are encouraged to contact the editorial office prior to submission:
Email: fuen@fupubco.com
Website: fupubco.com/fuen
Publisher: Future Publishing LLC