The hidden cost of open access: Artificial intelligence, paywalls and the risk of knowledge inequity

Authors

Brenda D. Wingfield Department of Biochemistry, Genetics and Microbiology, Forestry and Agricultural Biotechnology Institute (FABI), University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6189-1519
Beverley J. Wingfield Department of Financial Management, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa https://orcid.org/0009-0006-9359-2894

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.17159/sajs.2025/23053

Keywords:

artifical intelligence, open access, journal paywalls, large language models, LLMs, knowledge equity

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Published

2025-11-26

Issue

Vol. 121 No. 11/12 (2025)

Section

Commentary

License

All articles are published under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Licence

Copyright is retained by the authors. Readers are welcome to reproduce, share and adapt the content without permission provided the source is attributed.

Disclaimer: The publisher and editors accept no responsibility for statements made by the authors

How to Cite

Wingfield, B. D., & Wingfield, B. J. (2025). The hidden cost of open access: Artificial intelligence, paywalls and the risk of knowledge inequity. South African Journal of Science, 121(11/12). https://doi.org/10.17159/sajs.2025/23053