[Dutch] Elsevier journal under fire over ‘AI-generated’ review comments

UK academic Keith Baker criticized the journal Heliyon after suspecting that chatbot-generated reviews led to the rejection of his paper—nearly two years after submission. His article, co-authored by Scottish academics, explored how proposals for a state-owned energy company in Scotland inspired a similar model in Wales. Despite the paper containing no statistical analysis, reviewers suggested 14 statistical improvements, such as explaining algorithms and including forest plots—comments Baker called “nonsensical.” He and his co-authors believe the peer review was AI-generated, citing irrelevant feedback and months of automated replies from the journal. Heliyon, owned by Elsevier, has been under scrutiny since Clarivate paused its indexation due to article quality concerns. The $2,270 article fee was covered by the authors' institutions given the policy relevance. Elsevier acknowledged the issue and stated it would investigate and strengthen measures to prevent unauthorized AI use in peer review, in line with its GenAI policy prohibiting LLMs. 

Source: Elsevier journal under fire over ‘AI-generated’ review comments, July 11, 2025. https://www.timeshighereducation.com/news/elsevier-journal-under-fire-over-ai-generated-review-comments