AI Disclosure Statement: What to Write, With Examples

# AI Disclosure Statement: What to Write, With Examples

An AI disclosure statement (also called an AI acknowledgement or AI declaration) is a short passage in your manuscript that names the generative AI tool you used, says what you used it for, and confirms that you reviewed the output and take full responsibility for the content (Elsevier, 2026b). Some publishers also want the tool's version number and your reason for using it (Taylor & Francis, n.d.-a). Where the statement goes, and whether plain language editing counts, depends on the publisher.

What the statement has to say

A complete statement covers:

• Tool: full name and version (Taylor & Francis, n.d.-a; Wiley, n.d.).
• Task and place: what the tool did, and in which sections (Wiley, n.d.).
• When: the date or year of use (Wiley, n.d.).
• Your role and responsibility: how you directed and reviewed the output, and that you take full responsibility for all content, including the accuracy of your references (Taylor & Francis, n.d.-b; Wiley, n.d.).

APA journals also want the tool cited (American Psychological Association [APA], n.d.). The ICMJE asks you to describe AI use in the cover letter as well as the manuscript and warns that nondisclosure "may be construed as misconduct" in some cases (International Committee of Medical Journal Editors [ICMJE], n.d.).

Can ChatGPT be listed as an author?

No. Chatbots cannot be responsible for the accuracy, integrity and originality of the work, so they should not be authors (ICMJE, n.d.). Elsevier, Wiley, Taylor & Francis, APA journals and Springer Nature all agree (APA, n.d.; Elsevier, 2026b; Springer Nature, n.d.-a; Taylor & Francis, n.d.-a; Wiley, n.d.). Even when you cite ChatGPT in APA Style, the author is OpenAI, not the tool (APA, 2026).

Where it goes, publisher by publisher

• Elsevier (journals): a separate section at the end of the manuscript, immediately before the references, titled for instance "Declaration of generative AI and AI-assisted technologies in the manuscript preparation process". Basic grammar, spelling and punctuation checks need no declaration; substantive changes to sentence structure or organization do (Elsevier, 2026b). Elsevier's books page uses a title ending "in the writing process" (Elsevier, 2026a).
• Springer Nature: the group guidance page says to declare AI use in the Introduction or Acknowledgements and that AI-assisted copy editing need not be declared (Springer Nature, n.d.-a). The manuscript-preparation page instead lists language editing as low-risk but still asks you to describe the use and confirm author accountability (Springer Nature, n.d.-b). The two official pages differ, so ask the journal if unsure.
• Wiley: Acknowledgments for drafting, editing, translation or formatting; Methods for methodology, data analysis or literature review; figure captions for AI visuals. Simple grammar and word-choice fixes typically need no disclosure; translation and substantially rephrased text do (Wiley, n.d.).
• Taylor & Francis: article submissions need a specific AI disclosure statement. The policy page lists language improvement as a supported use without exempting it (Taylor & Francis, n.d.-a).
• Sage (journals): "assistive" tools for language, grammar or structure need no disclosure. Generative uses, such as literature review help or compiling references, go in the methods or acknowledgments (Sage, n.d.).
• APA journals: one page says AI use must be disclosed "in the manuscript" and that editing must be disclosed too (APA, n.d.). The additional guidance page first says "in the methods section," then sorts by use: translation or extensive copyediting in the author note, code in the Method section, drafting in the introduction, figures where they appear (APA, 2025).

Example statements

Elsevier's journal policy gives this suggested format (Elsevier, 2026b):

"During the preparation of this work, the author(s) used [NAME OF TOOL / SERVICE] in order to [REASON]. After using this tool/service, the author(s) reviewed and edited the content as needed and take(s) full responsibility for the content of the published article."

The examples below are our own example wording, not any publisher's. Fill in the brackets and place each where your publisher asks.

Example: language editing

The authors used [tool name and version] in [month year] to improve the clarity and flow of the Introduction and Discussion, including restructuring some sentences. The authors reviewed all suggestions and take full responsibility for the content.

Example: translation (Acknowledgments)

The authors acknowledge the use of [tool name and version] (accessed [month year]) to translate the Methods section from [language] into English. The authors checked the translation against the original and take full responsibility for the work.

Example: literature search (Methods)

We used [tool name and version] in [month year] to suggest search terms and candidate studies. The authors read every suggested source, and only verified sources are cited.

Example: data analysis or code (Methods)

Analysis code was written with help from [tool name and version] in [month year]. The authors tested and revised it over [number] iterations and checked all outputs against the raw data.

Example: figure caption

Figure 2. Sampling workflow. Initial layout generated with [tool name and version] ([month year]) and edited by the authors, who checked all elements for accuracy.

Images have extra limits: Elsevier journals allow AI help with explanatory images such as flow charts but not images of primary research data (Elsevier, 2026b).

If you used no AI, Taylor & Francis suggests saying so, for example: "The authors report generative AI was not used in their research or preparation of this manuscript" (Taylor & Francis, n.d.-b).

You are responsible for what AI produced, including references

You must be able to assert there is no plagiarism, including in AI-produced text and images, and AI-generated material cannot be cited as a primary source (ICMJE, n.d.).

If AI helped you find sources or build your reference list, check every entry before you submit. Paste the list into PerfectRefs: the Existence check looks up each reference in Crossref, OpenAlex and other scholarly databases and flags the ones it can't find, with a free daily allowance. The Style check compares authors, title, journal, year, volume/issue/pages and DOI field by field with the database record, shows the record's values with a source link, and lets you accept a fix with one click. It uses premium credits (2 per reference); new accounts get 10 premium credits.

FAQ

Do I need to declare AI grammar and spelling checks?

Usually not for Elsevier, Wiley or Sage journals, if the tool made only basic corrections (Elsevier, 2026b; Sage, n.d.; Wiley, n.d.). APA journals say editing must be disclosed (APA, n.d.). Springer Nature's pages disagree and Taylor & Francis states no exemption, so check with the journal (Springer Nature, n.d.-a, n.d.-b; Taylor & Francis, n.d.-a).

How do I cite ChatGPT in APA 7?

APA Style's example is "OpenAI. (2025). ChatGPT [Large language model]. https://chatgpt.com", where the year is when the tool was last updated (APA, 2026). An in-text citation plus one general reference to the tool is usually enough, rather than one per chat (McAdoo et al., 2025).

Will declaring AI use hurt my chances?

Springer Nature says a declaration "does not negatively influence editorial decisions" (Springer Nature, n.d.-b). Failing to declare, by contrast, may require corrective action (ICMJE, n.d.).

Should I keep my prompts?

Yes. APA advises researchers to record their prompts and to keep AI output for code and figures in case of questions (APA, 2025).