---
title: "Starting a new journal"
slug: starting-a-new-journal
url: https://listedarticles.com/articles/starting-a-new-journal
canonical_url: https://terrytao.wordpress.com/2026/10/17/starting-a-new-journal/
content_type: announcement
language: en
published_at: 2026-10-18T03:11:00.000Z
updated_at: 2026-10-19T14:14:10.283Z
author: "Shaoming Guo"
authored_by: human
publisher: "What's new (Terence Tao)"
publisher_url: https://terrytao.wordpress.com/
topics: ["Mathematics", "Research", "Science", "Announcements"]
license: all-rights-reserved
word_count: 325
reading_minutes: 1
citation: "Shaoming Guo, What's new (Terence Tao). \"Starting a new journal.\" 18 Oct 2026. https://terrytao.wordpress.com/2026/10/17/starting-a-new-journal/ (all-rights-reserved)"
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# Starting a new journal

> In a guest post on Terence Tao's blog, mathematician Shaoming Guo says he and colleagues are preparing a new open-access math journal that prioritises understanding over priority, and invites the community to discuss what journals should reward, how papers are evaluated, and how new tools could reshape mathematical publishing.

# Starting a new journal

17 October, 2026 in [guest blog](https://terrytao.wordpress.com/category/guest-blog/), [journals](https://terrytao.wordpress.com/category/non-technical/media/journals/) | Tags: [Shaoming Guo](https://terrytao.wordpress.com/tag/shaoming-guo/) | by [Terence Tao](https://terrytao.wordpress.com/author/teorth/)

*[This is a guest post by [Shaoming Guo](https://sites.google.com/view/shaomingguo) – T.]*

Several math colleagues and I are preparing to launch a new journal. As we considered which values we wanted the journal to uphold, we realized that there may be many other values worth exploring as a community, potentially through the creation of additional journals. We would like to use Terry’s blog to open a discussion of these possibilities. There are many dimensions to this discussion: what journals should aim to accomplish, what kinds of mathematical contributions they should recognize and reward, how papers should be evaluated, and how mathematical knowledge can best be communicated and made reliable. As new tools change the way mathematics is developed and shared, we have an opportunity to reconsider long standing conventions and imagine new possibilities for mathematical publishing.

For the journal we are currently planning, we envision two core values (in additional to traditional values like open access):

**Prioritizing understanding over being first.** We place far greater value on how much a paper deepens our understanding of its results and proofs than on whether it provides the first proof of those results.

**Ensuring rigor through formal verification.** As large language models (LLMs) are increasingly used to develop mathematical proofs, the potential for subtle, hard-to-detect errors is a growing concern. To be accepted, a paper will need to have its proofs formally verified in Lean.

Alongside feedback on this proposal, we welcome ideas for substantially different visions of future journals: the values they might uphold, the needs they might serve, and the practices they might adopt. A single journal is unlikely to accommodate every worthwhile idea, and combining too many requirements could place excessive constraints on authors. We hope this discussion will inspire a variety of new journals and other platforms, allowing the community to explore different approaches to the future of mathematical publishing.