Straive and Imagetwin Partner to Strengthen Image Integrity Screening in Scientific Publishing
Straive, a global leader in technology-driven content and data solutions, and Imagetwin, a leading provider of image integrity analysis software, are pleased to announce a strategic partnership to bring image forensics directly into the editorial workflow.
Image manipulation in scientific publishing has moved well past basic photo editing. Generative AI and GAN-generated figures can now produce fake data that bypasses many traditional detection tools, and by the time a problem surfaces post-publication, the investigation and correction process is slow, costly, and damaging to a journal’s credibility. Catching these issues earlier, before peer review, is where the industry needs to focus.
By embedding Imagetwin’s image analysis into Straive’s aiKira Editorial Desk API, publishers can now screen for manipulated, duplicated, plagiarised, or AI-generated visuals as part of a broader set of more than 20 automated integrity checks that aiKira runs across authorship, journal scope, reference verification, and text. In a pilot study, Straive found the combined solution identified 98% of image integrity issues, including known manipulated images and AI-generated figures. Running these checks upstream gives publishers a way to catch compromised research before it moves further through the pipeline.
Srinivasan Govindarajan, Business Head, Research Content, Straive says:
“Research integrity is at a breaking point, and this partnership directly answers this ever-growing challenge. Together, we’re empowering publishers to not only uphold the credibility of the scientific record at scale, but get ahead of fraud thanks to the technological breakthroughs we’re achieving.”
Patrick Starke, Imagetwin’s Co-Founder and CEO adds to that:
“The earlier an integrity issue is found, the easier and less damaging it is to fix. Partnering with Straive lets us put image integrity screening directly into publishers’ existing workflows through aiKira, so integrity checks happen automatically, at scale, before problems reach peer review.”
About Straive
Straive is a leader in Data and AI Operationalization, helping global clients build and run AI-powered solutions that replace and transform the legacy enterprise, combining AI engineering, data expertise, and deep domain knowledge. Straive serves clients across Financial & Information Services, Healthcare & Life Sciences, Retail, Technology & Media, Logistics & Manufacturing, Education, and Research, operating globally through delivery teams across the Americas, Europe, Africa, and Asia. Straive is owned by EQT, a purpose-driven global investment organization focused on active ownership strategies. For more information, visit www.straive.com.
Frequently asked questions
What does the Straive-Imagetwin partnership do?
It embeds Imagetwin’s image integrity analysis directly into Straive’s aiKira Editorial Desk API, so publishers can automatically screen manuscripts for manipulated, duplicated, plagiarized, and AI-generated images alongside aiKira’s other 20+ integrity checks, all before peer review.
How accurate is the combined solution at catching image integrity issues?
In a pilot study, Straive found the combined Imagetwin–aiKira solution identified 98% of image integrity issues, including known manipulated images and AI-generated figures.
Why is catching image manipulation before peer review important?
Once a compromised paper is published, correcting or retracting it is slow, costly, and damages a journal’s credibility. Screening at the editorial stage, before peer review, lets publishers stop fraudulent or manipulated research from advancing through the pipeline in the first place.