The PubScholar academic platform, launched by the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) in 2023, has surpassed 1 billion visits and serves users in 158 countries and regions. Designed as a free and open-access tool, the platform aggregates scientific papers and data to support global research collaboration and innovation.
At the inaugural Asia-Pacific meeting of the International Association of Scientific, Technical and Medical Publishers (STM), Liu Xiwen, Director of the National Science Library at CAS, described PubScholar as a key step in advancing open science. The platform aligns with CAS's broader efforts to promote accessibility, reusability, and global sharing of scientific knowledge.
According to Wu Shangzhi, President of the China Periodicals Association, Chinese scholars published over 290,000 open-access articles in 2023—accounting for 43.2% of the country's total scientific output. While open science is gaining momentum worldwide, Wu acknowledged ongoing challenges, particularly in maintaining quality as access expands.
To address this, Wu called for greater focus on high-quality research, journals, and editorial practices. He also emphasized leveraging technologies like AI to modernize academic publishing and adapt to evolving models of scholarly communication.
Wu emphasized that quality must remain the cornerstone of open science. In response to the rapid rise of open-access journals, he urged Chinese scientific journals to focus on three priorities: high-level research outcomes, high-quality academic papers, and high-standard publishing platforms.
He also called for embracing technological advancement and innovation in publishing. “Emerging technologies like large language models are providing powerful support for topic selection and content development,” Wu noted. In addition, he encouraged the adoption of new publishing models to better align with evolving practices in scholarly communication and to drive high-quality development of China's scientific journals.
Wu further stressed the importance of collaborative platform building and deepening international cooperation. “We are ready to work with the STM Association to improve global connectivity and resource sharing,” he said, adding that the China Periodicals Association will actively support partnerships between domestic and international publishers to contribute to global scientific progress.
PubScholar is part of China's broader “Open for Science10” initiative, which aims to build shared infrastructure for global knowledge exchange. Liu invited international partners to collaborate on standards, technologies, and governance for open science systems.
STM CEO Caroline Sutton welcomed deeper cooperation with Chinese publishers, noting that ongoing partnerships are helping to drive collective progress.
During the meeting, Liu Xiwen also extended an invitation to global partners: “We welcome worldwide collaboration to jointly build open scientific infrastructure, establish standards for open science, and develop the necessary technical frameworks to advance shared progress.”
Source: Science and Technology Daily, VOC
