Silverchair Launches Discovery Bridge to Connect Scholarly Content with AI Research Tools

New platform leverages Model Context Protocol to integrate publisher content with AI assistants while maintaining access controls and creating new revenue opportunities.

Published on Feb. 10, 2026

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Silverchair, a leading technology partner for scholarly publishers, has announced the launch of the Discovery Bridge, a new platform that leverages the Model Context Protocol (MCP) to seamlessly connect publisher content with AI-powered research tools like ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Claude. The Discovery Bridge allows researchers to access scholarly content through natural language queries while preserving publishers' subscription controls and intellectual property rights. It also opens up new revenue streams for publishers, including corporate content bundles and consumption-based licensing models.

Why it matters

As AI assistants become essential research workbenches for scholars, the Discovery Bridge ensures that publisher content remains discoverable and accessible through the channels where researchers are already working. This helps amplify the impact of scholarly research while also protecting publishers' valuable intellectual property and creating new revenue opportunities in the evolving AI-driven research ecosystem.

The details

The Discovery Bridge integrates with existing AI assistants, allowing researchers to search and access scholarly content through natural language queries without disrupting their workflows. By connecting with publishers' existing entitlement systems, the solution maintains paywall integrity and respects subscription controls while extending content reach. The platform also supports research integrity by automatically excluding retracted articles, ensuring only current, validated content reaches researchers through AI-assisted discovery. Publishers can control content availability and pricing through the same subscription rules they use for web access, with the platform handling the computational complexity of search, retrieval, and access verification.

  • Silverchair announced the launch of the Discovery Bridge on February 10, 2026.

The players

Silverchair

The leading independent technology partner for scholarly publishers, Silverchair builds, maintains, and innovates platforms across the publishing lifecycle.

Will Schweitzer

Silverchair's CEO, who stated that the Discovery Bridge gives publishers the necessary infrastructure to deliver their insights and content into AI solutions while protecting their valuable intellectual property and creating new revenue streams.

ChatGPT

An AI assistant that the Discovery Bridge integrates with, allowing researchers to access scholarly content through natural language queries.

Perplexity

An AI assistant that the Discovery Bridge integrates with, allowing researchers to access scholarly content through natural language queries.

Claude

An AI assistant that the Discovery Bridge integrates with, allowing researchers to access scholarly content through natural language queries.

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What they’re saying

“The research ecosystem is quickly evolving as many end users are using chatbots like ChatGPT or agentic tools to discover and engage with scholarly content. Our Discovery Bridge gives publishers the necessary infrastructure to deliver their insights and content into AI solutions while protecting their valuable intellectual property and creating new revenue streams. This is one way we're helping our clients with their AI innovation and an important way we can help amplify the impact of scholarship.”

— Will Schweitzer, CEO, Silverchair (librarytechnology.org)

What’s next

The Discovery Bridge represents Silverchair's continued investment in AI-driven innovation that serves both immediate market needs and long-term strategic positioning as research workflows continue to evolve.

The takeaway

The Discovery Bridge is a significant development in the scholarly publishing industry, as it allows publishers to seamlessly integrate their content with the AI-powered research tools that are becoming increasingly essential for scholars, while also protecting their intellectual property and creating new revenue opportunities in the evolving AI-driven research landscape.