Conflict of Interest Policy
Conflict of Interest COI Policy
AI and Future Society is committed to the highest standards of integrity and objectivity. All participants in the editorial process authors reviewers and editors must disclose any potential conflicts of interest COIs that may influence or appear to influence the outcome of a submission.
1 Definition of Conflict of Interest
A conflict of interest arises when personal financial professional or institutional relationships compromise or appear to compromise an individuals judgment. This includes:
- Financial ties eg grants consultancy stock ownership royalties
- Personal relationships eg family close friendship enmity
- Professional collaborations eg co-authorship within the past 3 years
- Institutional affiliations eg same department or funding body
- Political or ideological commitments relevant to the research
2 Author Responsibilities
- Disclose all potential COIs during manuscript submission
- Include a Conflict of Interest Statement within the article even if none exist
- List all sources of funding support and relevant institutional ties
Example Statements:
The authors declare no competing interests.
Author A received research funding from Organization X which had no role in study design data collection or publication decisions.
3 Reviewer Responsibilities
- Decline review requests if a current or recent relationship with the authors exists
- Recuse themselves in cases of competing research or institutional bias
- Disclose any COIs to the editor that arise during the review process
4 Editor Responsibilities
- Recuse themselves from handling submissions where a COI exists
- Ensure peer reviewers are free from known COIs
- Manage any editorial COIs transparently eg when handling submissions from their own institution
5 Transparency and Disclosure
All disclosed COIs will be evaluated by the editorial board. If a significant undeclared COI is discovered post-publication the journal may issue a correction expression of concern or retraction.
