The article by Sun Huh discusses the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on journal publishing, highlighting two emerging trends: the metaverse and artificial intelligence, particularly focusing on ChatGPT. The pandemic led to an increase in online workshops and seminars, as well as a surge in submissions to scientific journals. The metaverse has been used for editors’ meetings and conferences, offering a new way to attend and interact in meetings virtually. Huh also explores the role of ChatGPT in journal publishing and editing, noting its usefulness in writing, editing, journal selection, and reference recommendation, despite limitations in areas like information retrieval and plagiarism checks.

ChatGPT’s ability to improve manuscript quality through proofreading is highlighted, with results showing significant improvements. However, caution is advised in using ChatGPT for certain tasks, as it sometimes provides insufficient or incorrect answers. The article also addresses the debate over ChatGPT’s eligibility as an author, concluding that it currently does not meet the criteria for authorship. Furthermore, Huh discusses the challenges in citing ChatGPT’s responses in articles, given the inconsistency of its answers over time and versions.

Link to the article: https://escienceediting.org/journal/view.php?number=296