What should I look out for with AI in research & science?

Never use AI as a source: every reference must be traceable to the original article, as fabricated or wrongly attributed citations are the most common error. Unpublished data, research proposals and peer-review manuscripts are confidential or commercially sensitive, so do not enter them into a consumer account without a data processing agreement, and check whether the provider stores your input or uses it for training (publishers usually prohibit this explicitly for peer review). If you work with personal data from research participants, the GDPR and your own ethics review apply: running models locally or using an EU-hosted tool with data minimisation is then the safe route. Finally, document your search strategy and your AI use: journals and funders increasingly ask for this, and a review must remain reproducible.

Home / Safety / Cradle for research & science

Cradle (Amsterdam, Netherlands and Zürich, Switzerland)

How safe is Cradle for research & science?

GDPR profile for research & scienceStrong

Cradle has a strong published GDPR profile and, with the right business settings, is well suited for use in research & science.

Where does Cradle stand in research & science?

Shared position 1 of 30 options for research & science (professional tools and general assistants) on GDPR profile. 5 options, like Cradle, have a strong profile. Each tile is an option we track for this field; click for the check.

Strong5

Good6

Limited8

Unknown4

Caution7

Published safeguards

✓Provider based in NL/EUYes

✓Data in the EU (according to provider)Yes

✓Publishes certification (ISO/NEN/GDPR)Yes

proprietary protein models, trained per client. Hosted on Google Cloud in the Netherlands (europe-west4) with replication within the EU; Cradle never combines or shares data or models between clients. SOC 2 Type II, ISO 27001 in preparation; data processing agreement (DPA) available.

How to use Cradle safely

Use the business variant and sign a data processing agreement (DPA).
Do not enter unnecessary personal data into prompts; anonymise where possible.
Enable EU data residency where the provider offers it.
Keep a professional in the loop: never use AI as a source: every reference must be traceable to the original article, as invented or misattributed citations are the most common error.

Stronger or equally strong in research & science

ASReview LABUniversiteit Utrecht (the Netherlands)

KeeniousKeenious (Norway)

ScholarcyEverway Opco Limited / Scholarcy (Antrim, United Kingdom)

SciSpacePubGenius Inc. (Milpitas, United States)

CastorCastor (Amsterdam, Netherlands)

Questions

How safe is Cradle for research & science?: Cradle has a strong published GDPR profile and, with the right business settings, is well suited for use in research & science. EU options, no training on your data and/or self-hostable.
Does Cradle train on my data?: proprietary protein models, trained per client. Hosted on Google Cloud in the Netherlands (europe-west4) with replication within the EU; Cradle never combines or shares data or models between clients. SOC 2 Type II, ISO 27001 in preparation; data processing agreement (DPA) available.
What should I look out for with AI in research & science?: Never use AI as a source: every reference must be traceable to the original article, as fabricated or wrongly attributed citations are the most common error. Unpublished data, research proposals and peer-review manuscripts are confidential or commercially sensitive, so do not enter them into a consumer account without a data processing agreement, and check whether the provider stores your input or uses it for training (publishers usually prohibit this explicitly for peer review). If you work with personal data from research participants, the GDPR and your own ethics review apply: running models locally or using an EU-hosted tool with data minimisation is then the safe route. Finally, document your search strategy and your AI use: journals and funders increasingly ask for this, and a review must remain reproducible.

Source documents

www.cradle.bio www.cradle.bio

Everything about Cradle Best AI for research & science

Summarised by the editorial team from provider documentation · not legal advice

Last checked: 2 November 2026 · How we check

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