MDPI INSIGHTS: The CEO’s Letter #40 - Open Access Week, Nobel Prizes, Italy & Greece Summits, STM Conference & Frankfurt Book Fair

Opening Thoughts

Opening Thoughts: The Cost of Knowledge

October marked another International Open Access Week, an annual opportunity for our research community to reflect on the progress, challenges, and future of scholarly communication.

This year’s theme, “The Cost of Knowledge,” follows up on last year’s theme, “Who Owns Our Knowledge?”, and raises an important question: What does it cost to make scientific knowledge openly available, and who should bear that cost?

This is a highly relevant question for MDPI as we celebrate our 30th anniversary and reflect on our role in advancing Open Science.

“Openness is a commitment to making scientific knowledge more accessible, transparent, and useful to society”

Knowledge has never been free to produce. Behind every scientific publication are researchers who have invested months or years developing ideas, conducting experiments, analysing results, and refining their findings. Universities, research institutions, and funders invest resources in supporting this work. Publishing is another part of that process, helping ensure that research is evaluated, communicated, preserved, and made available for others to build upon.

Open Access (OA) changes how the costs of publishing are distributed. Rather than charging readers or institutions to access published research, the article processing charge (APC) model places those costs on authors, institutions, or funders. This removes financial barriers for readers, but it also raises legitimate questions about affordability, transparency, and equitable opportunities for researchers to publish their work.

As a fully OA publisher, MDPI has a responsibility to engage openly with these questions.

The MDPI Blog shares resources on Open Access:

• All You Need to Know About Open Access

• Why Open Access is Important

• Open Access Policies and Mandates Around the World

Our APCs support a range of publishing activities, from coordinating peer review and maintaining editorial standards to research integrity checks, production, indexing, long-term preservation, and the development of the platforms used by authors, reviewers, and editors. They also support initiatives such as our Institutional Open Access Programme (IOAP), which helps participating institutions reduce publishing costs, and our wider engagement with the academic community.

These services require continued investment in people, technology, and infrastructure. At the same time, we must remain attentive to the financial pressures faced by researchers and institutions, particularly in countries and disciplines where funding for OA is limited.

For me, the discussion about the cost of knowledge is not simply about whether OA is more or less expensive than traditional publishing. It is about how we build a publishing system that is transparent about its costs, provides value to the research community, and enables as many people as possible to participate in the creation and sharing of scientific knowledge.

Over the past 30 years, MDPI has contributed to making millions of research articles freely accessible to readers worldwide. As we look ahead, our ambition is to go beyond removing barriers to reading research. We should also continue working to reduce barriers to publishing, improve the quality and integrity of the scholarly record, and ensure that our services remain relevant to the evolving needs of researchers.

You can read our Open Access Week 2026 announcement, which looks at these questions in detail and highlights the resources and discussions organized by MDPI and Preprints.org.

The theme of this year’s Open Access Week is a useful reminder that openness is not simply a publishing model. It is a commitment to making scientific knowledge more accessible, transparent, and useful to society. Maintaining that commitment requires us to continue listening, learning, and improving how we serve the global research community.

Inside MDPI

Reflections from the MDPI Italy Summit 2026 (14–15 October)

During 14–15 October, we gathered for our annual MDPI Italy Summit in Milan. The event brought together Editors-in-Chief (EiCs), Section Editors-in-Chief (SEiCs), and MDPI colleagues for two days of presentations, discussions about publishing and Open Access (OA) in Italy, and opportunities to exchange ideas. It was a pleasure to meet with members of our Italian academic community, hear their perspectives, and discuss MDPI’s development as we celebrate our 30th anniversary.

Since 1996, researchers affiliated with Italian institutions have contributed to more than 167,500 publications in MDPI journals.

Our third-largest market by publication volume

Italy is one of Europe's major contributors to OA research and is MDPI’s third-largest market by publication volume. In 2025, about 78% of Italian research articles were published OA, representing more than 117,000 OA articles. Of these, approximately 62,000 were published through the Gold OA model.

Over the past five years (2021–2025), researchers affiliated with Italian institutions published more than 700,000 research papers, approximately 79% of which were OA. These figures show both the scale of Italy’s research output and the country's strong adoption of OA publishing.

Italy is also home to some of Europe’s longest-established research institutions, including Sapienza University of Rome, the University of Bologna, the University of Milan, and the University of Padua, all of which make substantial contributions to the country's scientific output.

MDPI and Italy

Since 1996, researchers affiliated with Italian institutions have contributed to more than 167,500 publications in MDPI journals. In 2025 alone, Italian researchers published just over 20,000 articles with MDPI, representing approximately 17% of the country’s OA publications that year. MDPI is also the second-largest OA publisher in Italy by publication volume.

Our relationship with the Italian academic community extends well beyond publications. As at October 2026, more than 12,800 researchers from Italy serve as active Editorial Board Members across MDPI journals, including 101 EiCs, 251 SEiCs, and 189 Associate Editors.

These figures reflect the depth of our engagement with the Italian research community and remind us of the responsibility that comes with it. Our journals depend on the expertise, commitment, and trust of the researchers and editors who contribute their time to supporting scholarly communication.

Summit Programme and Discussions

The Summit programme covered important aspects of MDPI’s publishing activities and future development:

• MDPI at 30: Reflections and the Road Ahead – Stefan Tochev
• Editorial Process and Research Integrity – Giulia Stefenelli
• Engaging the Academic Community – Marta Colomer
• Artificial Intelligence in Scientific Publishing and Research – Enric Sayas
• Introduction to the Data Intelligence Tool Ontology – Daniele Raimondi
• Panel Discussion with EiCs and MDPI representatives
• Closing Remarks and Networking Session

What I particularly appreciated was the opportunity for direct and open dialogue. Events like these allow us to move beyond presentations and statistics, listen to the people who work with our journals, and better understand their expectations, concerns, and ideas.

Participants appreciated the opportunity to engage directly with MDPI representatives, gain a better understanding of our editorial guidelines and AI tools, and learn more about how we work with academic communities worldwide. 

Impactful Research

Celebrating the 2026 Nobel Prizes and Scientific Discovery

October is always an exciting time for the scientific community, as the Nobel Prizes celebrate researchers whose discoveries have advanced our understanding of the world and opened new possibilities for science and society.

Over the years, MDPI has published research co-authored by more than 120 Nobel Prize laureates, and we are pleased to see several of this year’s winners among them. Professors Peter Hegemann, Georg Nagel, and Kenso Soai have all contributed to research published in MDPI journals, and it’s great to see their scientific achievements recognized at this level.

For a broader look at this year’s Nobel Prizes, I recommend reading 2026 Nobel Prizes: A Celebration of Scientific and Societal Discovery written by Lewis Hatton from our Digital Marketing and Content team. 

Illuminating the Brain: Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine

The 2026 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine was awarded to Karl Deisseroth, Peter Hegemann, and Georg Nagel for their discoveries involving light-gated ion channels and optogenetics.

Their research has helped scientists understand how the brain works by developing methods to control the activity of nerve cells using light. What began with discoveries involving light-sensitive proteins in algae developed into a research approach for investigating neural circuits, memories, behaviour, and neurological conditions. It is fascinating to consider how research into a single-celled organism can eventually lead to entirely new ways of studying the human brain.

We are pleased that Professors Hegemann and Nagel have co-authored several articles published in MDPI journals, including International Journal of Molecular Sciences, Bioengineering, Membranes, Biomolecules, and Applied Sciences. These publications explore related areas of research involving light-sensitive proteins and optogenetic tools.

Read the MDPI announcement

Understanding Molecular Symmetry: Nobel Prize in Chemistry

The 2026 Nobel Prize in Chemistry was awarded to Henri B. Kagan and Kenso Soai for their discoveries involving asymmetric organic synthesis and homochirality.

Many molecules exist in two forms that mirror one another, much like our left and right hands. Yet living organisms often use only one of these forms. Understanding how this preference arises has been a longstanding question in chemistry.

The discoveries of Professors Kagan and Soai helped explain how a very small imbalance between molecular forms can become amplified, offering new insights into molecular symmetry and chemical processes relevant to pharmaceutical development.

Professor Soai also co-authored a review published in MDPI's journal Symmetry in 2019, exploring how asymmetric autocatalysis may help explain the origins of homochirality in organic compounds.

Read the MDPI announcement

Recognizing the People Behind Scientific Progress

Beyond the individual discoveries, the Nobel Prizes celebrate scientific progress. Breakthroughs may come from years, sometimes decades, of experimentation, collaboration, and the pursuit of questions whose answers are not obvious. Research builds upon earlier findings, and discoveries in one field can open entirely new possibilities in another.

This is something worth remembering in our daily work at MDPI. Every article we publish becomes part of a wider scientific record that researchers around the world can access, evaluate, and build upon. While only a small number of scientists receive Nobel Prizes, scientific progress depends on the contributions of many researchers, reviewers, editors, and institutions.

We congratulate all of this year’s Nobel laureates, and especially acknowledge Professors Hegemann, Nagel, and Soai, whose research has also appeared in MDPI journals.

This is a nice reminder of why dissemination of scientific knowledge matters, and of the importance of continuing to make research openly accessible to the global scientific community

Coming Together for Science

Our First MDPI Greece Summit in Athens (22–23 October)

On 22–23 October, we held our first-ever MDPI Greece Summit in Athens, bringing together some 25 Editors-in-Chief and Section Editors-in-Chief from across our journals, alongside MDPI colleagues. It was a pleasure to meet with members of our Greek academic community, exchange perspectives on publishing, and discuss how publishing has evolved in their local landscape.

“MDPI has developed a substantial relationship with the Greek research community”

As we celebrate MDPI’s 30th anniversary, these gatherings are a moment to reflect on how far we have come and also to listen to the researchers and editors who have contributed to our development.

Open Access in Greece

Greece has become an important contributor to the Open Access (OA) movement. In 2025, about 79% of Greek research articles were published OA, representing more than 21,000 publications. Of these, approximately 13,700 were published through the Gold OA model.

Over the past five years (2021–2025), researchers affiliated with Greek institutions published more than 124,000 research articles, about 75% of which were OA. These figures reflect the country’s strong adoption of open scholarly communication.

MDPI and Greece

MDPI has developed a substantial relationship with the Greek research community.

Since 1996, researchers affiliated with Greek institutions have contributed to more than 40,300 publications in MDPI journals. 

By publication volume, MDPI is the leading Open Access publisher in Greece, accounting for approximately 31% of the country’s OA research articles in 2025, according to Dimensions data. The graph below illustrates MDPI’s position among the five leading publishers.

Summit Discussions: Listening to Our Editors

The Summit programme provided an opportunity to share updates on MDPI’s development, editorial processes, research integrity, academic engagement, and the role of artificial intelligence in scholarly publishing. 

Our editors raised thoughtful questions and practical suggestions about several aspects of our publishing processes.

A recurring topic was peer reviewer recruitment and recognition, including how we can better identify qualified reviewers, improve the tools available to Academic Editors, and recognize reviewers for their contributions.

Other conversations discussed peer review workflows and editorial decision-making, AI-assisted peer review, research integrity, data transparency, and Editorial Board development. These discussions highlighted both opportunities for improvement and the importance of maintaining academic expertise and judgment at the centre of our processes.

“Our ambition is to become the most trusted Open Access publisher in the world”

As we continue organizing Summits around the world, it’s important that these events are opportunities to present MDPI’s progress and that they offer a genuine forum for open dialogue, where our academic community feels comfortable sharing its experiences, concerns, and ideas. 

Our ambition is to become the most trusted Open Access publisher in the world. Building that trust requires us to listen, remain open to constructive feedback, and demonstrate a willingness to improve.

Thank You

A sincere thank you to all the Chief Editors who joined us in Athens and contributed to the discussions. I would also like to thank our colleagues from Serbia who organized the Summit (especially Milica Milosev), our colleagues who delivered presentations (Damaris Critchlow, Despoina Kokona, Milos Cuculovic, and Nevena Blagojev for moderating the event) and who helped make our first gathering in Greece possible.

I hope this marks the beginning of more opportunities to engage with our Greek academic community and build our collaboration in the years ahead.

Closing Thoughts

Recap of STM Conference and Frankfurt Book Fair 2026

This month, I attended the STM Annual Conference in Frankfurt (which MDPI sponsored: nothing like having hundreds of attendees type Mdpi2026 as their Wi-Fi password!) and also visited the Frankfurt Book Fair, where MDPI was exhibiting. Both events were great opportunities to reconnect with colleagues and familiar faces, meet people from across the publishing industry, and hear about some of the changes taking place in our sector.

At the STM Conference: Note the password!

The STM Conference was organized around the theme “Operationalising Trust: Knowledge Infrastructure and Responsible AI.” We heard perspectives from publishers, libraries, technology providers, and leaders on how publishing is evolving. Two discussions particularly stood out to me: China’s changing research and publishing landscape, and the opportunities and responsibilities associated with artificial intelligence.

China: From Research Output to Global Influence

One of the most interesting sessions I attended was titled “From Output to Influence: China and the Future of Scholarly Communication.” China's growth as a global research powerhouse is well established. What I found interesting, however, was the discussion about how the country is now seeking to translate that research output into greater influence over scholarly communication itself.

China is seeking to translate its research output into greater influence over scholarly communication

The session explored changes in China’s research evaluation system, including a shift away from rewarding publication volume, journal prestige, and Impact Factors alone, toward greater emphasis on research quality, originality, societal impact, and representative research achievements.

We also heard about China’s ambitions to grow its domestic scholarly publishing infrastructure, including the development of national publishing platforms, internationally competitive journals, and evaluation systems tailored to its research environment.

A presentation from Tsinghua University Press highlighted some of the challenges faced by Chinese journals, including limited international visibility, attracting and retaining editorial talent, and securing recognition through both domestic and international indexing systems.

One statistic that stood out was the considerable gap between the volume of research produced by Chinese scholars and the publishing capacity of China’s domestic journals. This helps explain why developing internationally competitive Chinese journals has become an important strategic priority.

For MDPI, these developments are worth understanding. China is an important contributor to global research, but it is also a complex and evolving publishing environment. Building relationships with Chinese researchers, institutions, and publishing organizations requires more than understanding publication trends. It requires an appreciation of local policies, research evaluation practices, institutional priorities, and the more importantly the academic culture itself. 

AI: Innovation, Trust, and Accountability

Artificial intelligence was another major topic throughout the STM Conference. There is little doubt that AI is changing how researchers work and how publishers operate. What became clear from the discussions, however, is that adoption is moving faster than the development of the policies, governance structures, and shared expectations needed to support its responsible use.

One presentation, drawing on Elsevier’s Researcher of the Future report, noted that 58% of surveyed researchers were using AI tools in their work, compared with 37% a year earlier. Yet only 22% considered the AI tools they used trustworthy, and only 32% felt their institutions had good AI governance. Another presentation, drawing on Wiley’s Explanations research, highlighted that researchers are looking to publishers for clearer guidance on acceptable AI use.

“Researchers are looking to publishers for clearer guidance on acceptable AI use”

These findings suggest that while researchers are increasingly adopting AI, many remain uncertain about how to use it responsibly and assess the reliability of its outputs. Several panel discussions explored the tensions between speed and integrity, scale and accountability, transparency and complexity, and governance and innovation.

One message particularly resonated with me: “A human in the workflow is not the same as a human in control.” 

I think this is an important distinction as we consider how AI can support scholarly publishing. While AI can improve efficiency, support editorial processes, and help researchers navigate an increasingly large body of scientific work, we also need to remain clear about where human expertise, judgment, and accountability are essential.

For MDPI, it’s not only about how quickly we can adopt new technologies, but, crucially, how we can use them to strengthen the quality, integrity, and accessibility of scholarly communication. 

Frankfurt Book Fair: Connecting with Our Industry

Alongside the STM Conference, I visited the Frankfurt Book Fair, one of the major gatherings for the publishing industry. It was encouraging to see MDPI represented with our own booth, where colleagues could meet publishing professionals, introduce our work, and engage with visitors interested in Open Access.

As we celebrate MDPI’s 30th anniversary, I think it's especially important that we continue to strengthen our presence within the wider publishing community. Events like the Frankfurt Book Fair give us opportunities to learn from others, build relationships, exchange perspectives, and share our commitment to advancing Open Science.

“Events like the Frankfurt Book Fair give us opportunities to learn from others”

Thank you to our colleagues who helped organize MDPI’s presence at the Book Fair, staffed the booth, and represented our organization throughout the event. Your work make these opportunities possible.