The ALPSP Award for Innovation in Publishing 2026
This award, sponsored by PA EDitorial, recognises a product, service, technology, business model or project which is both innovative and of significant value to scholarly communication. Submissions can relate to any part of the scholarly and professional publishing industry but must demonstrate excellence in terms of originality and innovation, significance and value to its community, utility and long-term viability. Applications must define clearly the benefits and advances they represent in their sector.
The finalists for both the Impact and Innovation Awards are showcased in a lightning session at the ALPSP Annual Conference and Awards held in September and the winners are announced at the Conference Dinner.
The 2026 Judging Panel
Alexandra Winzeler, Digital Science
Alice Meadows, Independent Consultant
Athena Hoeppner, University of Central Florida
David Smith, Publishing Technology Consultant
David Sommer (Chair), Kudos
Emma Vodden, British Editorial Society of Bone and Joint Surgery
Jill Emery, Portland State University
Louise Russell, Tutton Russell Consulting
Maggie Simmons, Geological Society
Richard Gedye, Scholarly and Professional Publishing Consultant
Steve Sharp, Sheffield Hallam University
Award Winner 2026
Imagetwin
Imagetwin is an AI-powered image integrity screening tool for publishers, universities, and research organisations to identify problematic images in scientific manuscripts. The software detects duplicated, manipulated, plagiarised and AI-generated images across publications. Imagetwin extracts figures from scanned manuscripts and compares them against a database of over 120 million academic images within seconds. By integrating directly into editorial and manuscript submission workflows (e.g., ScholarOne), we enable scalable, automated image screening prior to publication. Imagetwin not only detects misconduct but also helps maintain public trust in science and avoid costly reputational damage from retractions.
Highly Commended
AI-powered Duplicate Peer Review Detection Tool – (Duplicate Review Checker)
IOP Publishing has developed a proprietary AI-powered tool to detect duplicate peer review reports, directly addressing a growing threat to research integrity. Fully integrated into IOPP’s editorial infrastructure, the tool uses machine learning to identify reviewer report similarities at scale, flagging unethical practices such as report reuse under different identities. Since launch, it has processed around half a million reports and identified more than 2,400 highly similar reviews. By combining automation, confidentiality and editorial oversight, the tool strengthens trust in peer review while offering a model that other publishers can use to develop similar tools.
Finalists for 2026
Shortlisted for the ALPSP Award for Innovation in Publishing:
Alchemist Review Journal Fit
Thoth Open Metadata
FigureTwo
ALPSP Award for Innovation in Publishing 2025
Winner
Finalists
Shortlisted for the ALPSP Award for Innovation in Publishing 2025:
AI Talks with Bone & Joint
Thoth Open Metadata
Embedding Transparency & Reproducibility in Science: A Scalable Partnership to Support Research Excellence and Data Sharing Policies
Alchemist Review
