New OpenAI tool renews fears that “AI slop” will overwhelm scientific research

On Tuesday, OpenAI released a free AI-powered workspace for scientists. It's called Prism, and it has drawn immediate skepticism from researchers who fear the tool will accelerate the already overwhelming flood of low-quality papers into scientific journals. The launch coincides with growing alarm among publishers about what many are calling "AI slop" in academic publishing.

To be clear, Prism is a writing and formatting tool, not a system for conducting research itself, though OpenAI's broader pitch blurs that line.