New generative AI feature will power Scopus, world’s leading abstract and citation database of peer-reviewed literature, so researchers can get deeper insights faster

Elsevier, a global leader in scientific information and data analytics, releases an alpha version of Scopus AI for researcher testing – a next generation tool that combines generative AI with Scopus' trusted content and data to help researchers get deeper insights faster, support collaboration and societal impact of research.

For more than a decade, Elsevier has been using AI and machine learning technologies responsibly in its products combined with its unparalleled peer-reviewed content, extensive data sets, and sophisticated analytics to help researchers, clinicians, students and educators discover, advance and apply trusted knowledge.

Researchers, especially those early in their careers or working across disciplines face significant challenges and complexity in their daily work, including an ever-growing volume of data, prevalent misinformation and increasing workloads. They need to understand and explore a particular topic quickly, recognize links across disciplines and collaborate with others for greater research and societal impact. Large Language Models (LLMs) have captured the world’s imagination with their ability to generate content, but they also have shortcomings such as a lack of transparency and hallucinations - inaccuracies or misinterpretations often occurring in AI-based information generation - which can undermine trust in the results delivered.

Scopus AI provides easy-to-read topic summaries based on trusted content from over 27,000 academic journals, from more than 7,000 publishers worldwide, with over 1.8 billion citations, and includes over 17 million author profiles. Content is rigorously vetted and selected by an independent review board, that is made up of 17 world-renowned scientists, researchers and librarians who represent the major scientific disciplines. Researchers can quickly dig deeper and explore these topics in several ways, including suggested follow-up questions and links to the original research. Powered by generative AI and LLM technology in combination with Scopus’s existing powerful search capabilities, Scopus AI will help early-career researchers and seasoned academics alike through:

• Summarized views based on Scopus abstracts: Researchers obtain a concise and trustworthy snapshot of any research topic, complete with academic references, reducing lengthy reading time and the risk of hallucinations.
• Easy navigation to "Go Deeper Links" for extended exploration: Scopus AI provides relevant queries for further exploration, leading to hidden insights in various research topics.
• Natural language queries: Researchers can ask questions about a subject in a natural, conversational manner.
• A soon-to-be-added graphical representation, offering new perspectives of interconnected research themes: Scopus AI visually maps search results, offering a comprehensive overview that allows researchers to navigate complex relationships easily.

Customer-driven innovation is core to Elsevier’s research and product development, the company will work closely with the research community to test and develop this innovative new technology. The Scopus AI ‘alpha’, an early-stage version of Scopus AI, is being tested worldwide with approximately 15,000 researchers, with a full product launch anticipated in early 2024.

Maxim Khan, SVP of Analytics Products and Data Platform, Elsevier, said: “Researchers need to understand unfamiliar topics, often with little time to do so. Greater collaboration between people in different research disciplines can also lead to greater academic and societal impact of research. We are applying generative AI on top of our data and trusted content to help researchers with these needs. Elsevier has been committed to working with the community and using AI responsibly for many years, from creating quality data to support decision making in research, to helping our customers assess the risks of potential new drug treatments. This is an important next step as we build more sophisticated solutions that will support our customers in the future.”

Customer experience, data privacy and integrity and responsible innovation are at the heart of Elsevier’s product development.

As we embed generative AI features into Scopus and other products, we will do so in line with our Responsible AI Principles and ourPrivacy Principles in collaboration with our communities to ensure our solutions help them achieve their goals.

Learn more about Scopus AI and how it is supporting research, view a short demo and register your interest.

About Elsevier

As a global leader in information and analytics, Elsevier helps researchers and healthcare professionals advance science and improve health outcomes for the benefit of society. We do this by facilitating insights and critical decision-making for customers across the global research and health ecosystems. In everything we publish, we uphold the highest standards of quality and integrity. We bring that same rigor to our information analytics solutions for researchers, academic leaders, funders, R&D-intensive corporations, doctors, and nurses.

Elsevier employs 9,000 people worldwide, including over 2,500 technologists. We have supported the work of our research and health partners for more than 140 years. Growing from our roots in publishing, we offer knowledge and valuable analytics that help our users make breakthroughs and drive societal progress. Digital solutions such as ScienceDirect, Scopus, SciVal, ClinicalKey and Sherpath support strategic research management, R&D performance, clinical decision support, and health education. Researchers and healthcare professionals rely on over 2,800 journals, including The Lancet and Cell; 46,000+ eBook titles; and iconic reference works, such as Gray's Anatomy. With the Elsevier Foundation and our external Inclusion & Diversity Advisory Board, we work in partnership with diverse stakeholders to advance inclusion and diversity in science, research and healthcare in developing countries and around the world.

Elsevier is part of RELX, a global provider of information-based analytics and decision tools for professional and business customers.