STM Trends: a Scholarly Communications Futurecast

In the scholarly publishing world, spring brings the annual return of STM Trends, a future-forward look at the entire ecosystem of scholarly communications by members of the STM Association. STM Trends captures the most impactful changes in research and publishing in a single themed image. Its aim is to: 

  • inspire broad thinking,
  • spark conversations,
  • catalyze ideas and solutions — and
  • galvanize those of us working to advance trusted science together.

 


Access the latest Trends here

How are STM Trends created?

STM’s Trends is created annually by members from our STEC Committee and the Future Lab, a discussion forum of over 30 STM members: senior staff in innovations, technology, strategy, business development, platforms, IT. In a group discussion, participants identify key technology-driven trends that are likely to impact the STM publishing industry in the next three to five years. Our methodology is based on the Delphi-method for technology forecasting. The outcome of this is translated every year into an infographic that looks up to 5 years ahead.

The Latest from STM

Gold OA continues to drive open access growth as the market matures

Gold OA articles jumped to its highest share ever in 2025, accounting for 44% of all global journal articles, reviews, and conference papers published, based on the latest release of the STM Open Access Dashboard. Nearly two million research articles were published gold OA in 2025, making it the principal driver of immediate, freely available…

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Two calls open for STM’s Innovation & Integrity Days 2026

STM has opened two calls for contributions to Innovation & Integrity Days 2026, taking place on 8–9 December at BMA House, London. The two-day event explores the breakthroughs transforming scholarly communication, and looks closely at the latest trends, approaches and innovations in research integrity. It brings together publishers, innovators, researchers, sleuths, funders and allied organisations….

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STM joins News/Media Alliance and AAP in Amicus Brief on Mosaic AI Training

STM has joined the Association of American Publishers (AAP) and News/Media Alliance in filing an Amicus Brief in In Re Mosaic LLM Litigation, concerning the alleged unauthorised use of copyrighted books in AI training. The brief was filed on 27 August 2026 in opposition to the defendants’ motion for summary judgment. The brief argues that using…

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STM prepares comments for AI and copyright consultations in the Asia-Pacific region

Following other governments, the National Copyright Administration in China and the Intellectual Copyright Office in Malaysia have opened consultations on the topics of AI and copyright. China’s draft regulations avoid proposing any new exception, and STM’s response supports this choice. The Malaysian government is more open to the idea, although a concrete proposal hasn’t been…

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