<b>Interpersonal Trust in the Era of Scientific Communication with Artificial Intelligence—An Essay</b>

Interpersonal trust is a fundamental pillar in the process of learning and delving deeper into various topics of interest, with people frequently seeking the support of scientific communicators. These professionals hold the responsibility of making complex concepts and scientific jargon accessible to a non-specialized audience. In the current scenario, the integration of Artificial Intelligence-based tools in scientific communication offers significant potential to optimize content production, both textual and visual, accelerating the cycle of informational material creation and elevating the efficiency in knowledge dissemination.However, this essay delves into the inherent risks to trust in AI-mediated scientific communication and discusses the potential risk of alienating the public interested in science due to the excessive or uncritical use of AI by communicators, especially when human curation and critical evaluation are ignored. Public trust can be compromised if they perceive that the content does not stem from the communicator's human knowledge, but rather from an artificial tool, generating a sense of deception and treachery. Transparency regarding AI use, the maintenance of human curation, and rigorous ethical oversight are essential elements to leverage the benefits of AI without compromising the human element and the trust people place in scientific communicators. The essay advocates for a careful balance, where AI acts as a supportive tool to enhance the capacity of human communicators, and not as an integral substitute for judgment, ethics, and authenticity in the dissemination of scientific knowledge.