The growth of AI and papermills has caused scientific publishers countless headaches, but they are beginning to fight back, as Michael Banks discovers

The dark side of science The demand on researchers to publish has increased the temptation for some scholars to cut corners and take risks to get published. (Courtesy: iStock/Martin Philip)" title="Click to open image in popup" href="https://physicsworld.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/2026-09-banks-laptop-keyboard-hand-typing-2216731334-istock-martin-philip.jpg"> The dark side of science The demand on researchers to publish has increased the temptation for some scholars to cut corners and take risks to get published. (Courtesy: iStock/Martin Philip)

On 17 April 2016 Elisabeth Bik , a microbiologist at Stanford University, published a paper that shocked the world of medicine – and also shook the foundations of scientific publishing.…