- AI and automation-driven innovations aim to transform research publishing in Malaysia
- Four key improvements to address significant challenges in research publishing workflows
Opustech Sdn Bhd, founded in 2018 as Malaysia’s first Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) journal management company, unveiled the latest version of OpusSoft 3.0 system, powered by artificial intelligence (AI) and automation, delivering an end-to-end solution for journal publishing, from submission to peer review to final publication.
The company, which received a US$121,000 (RM500,000) Cradle Grant in 2024 developed OpusSoft v3.0 with four key improvements designed to address significant challenges in research publishing workflows, aiming to enhance the global competitiveness of Malaysian journals.
Among the new services offered is Galley Proof, a feature that automates journal-specific formatting in less than 10 seconds, replacing a process that traditionally takes days or weeks, with fast, consistent, and error-free output.
Ramesh Balakrishnan (pic), founder and CEO of OpusSoft which is self-funded, said, “Journal publishers typically strive to balance rapid turnaround times with consistent quality. Our enhanced OpusSoft platform, powered by AI and automation, streamlines the entire workflow of journal publishing. This improves efficiency and increases productivity of the journal editorial team.”
OpusSoft’s current clients include Malaysian Journal of Microbiology (MJM), Malaysian Journal of Medicine and Health Sciences (MJMHS-UPM), Asia-Pacific Journal of Molecular Biology and Biotechnology (APJMBB), National Cancer Society of Malaysia, and Tropical Biomedicine.
As Malaysia’s pioneer in SaaS-based journal management systems, Ramesh believes the platform is set to transform the country’s publishing industry while enhancing the global visibility and impact of its research by assisting the journals in meeting international indexing requirements more easily.
“We aim to make Malaysian research publishing a benchmark for efficiency and innovation,” he said.
In 2024, OpusSoft received a grant from Cradle Fund (an agency under the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation), which helped support its product enhancements and marketing efforts.
According to Ramesh, the company is gearing up for regional expansion across Southeast Asia within the next 12 months, introducing multilingual capabilities and highly configurable customization to cater to the needs of diverse markets.
Other features of the newly released version include:
AI-powered Reviewer Recommendation Engine
Editorial boards are always looking for high-caliber reviewers for their journals. In response, OpusSoft enhanced its platform with an AI Recommendation Engine to help identify high-potential reviewers within authors’ existing social networks based on research expertise, citations, impact, and collaboration history. OpusSoft is also integrated with Web of Science Reviewer Locator.
Integration with Crossref
The Company has also made OpusSoft DOI-ready. It is now fully integrated with Crossref, a globally sought-after Digital Object Identifier (DOI) registration agency for scholarly and professional content. This allows editors to manage the entire DOI registration and assignment process in under five minutes, saving time and reducing errors.0
Web Publishing
The fourth transformative improvement allows papers with DOIs to be published directly to the Journal’s website with a click of a button. It also helps produce the print version available for download and circulation.
