Scientific output is exploding. The number of articles published has increased by a half in just six years to 2022, estimates suggest. That is putting a strain on the academic publishing sector even as it fuels its growth.

A shift from a pay-to-read model to a pay-to-publish model has increased the proportion of scientific papers published without a paywall by 20 percentage points to about half in the decade from 2010, one study found. Making research more accessible has clear benefits. But the change has brought several problems too.

The new model has opened the door to thousands of “predatory” publishers with substandard or outright faked peer review. Some reputable journals have also been hit by editors resigning in protest against high processing fees or commercial pressure to relax editorial standards.