Nikon Disqualifies Prize-Winning Scientific Video for Using Generative AI

Summary

Nikon has disqualified the winning entry in its Small World In Motion scientific photography competition after determining that generative AI was used in the video’s composition. The contest accepts photographs and videos captured through powerful microscopes, and Nikon said the entry did not comply with its generative-AI rules. The video, submitted by Tsinghua University researcher Dr Ning Xu, showed hair-like cilia moving in the airway of a child with primary ciliary dyskinesia (PCD). Xu had acknowledged using AI, but said he believed the use was allowed under the rules and cooperated with Nikon’s investigation. The decision followed complaints from scientists, including former competition judges, who questioned whether the footage was authentic. Dr Robert Hirst, a University of Leicester scientist who has diagnosed PCD for 20 years, said the cells and cilia looked unlike those of PCD patients and that he recognized the video as fabricated. Hirst said the controversy had affected patients, scientists, doctors, and PCD support networks. Nikon said the disqualification was about compliance with contest rules, not a judgment on Xu’s professional reputation or scientific contributions. The company is now reviewing the competition’s rules and procedures.