OpenAI launches Prism, a GPT-5.2 powered AI workspace for scientific research
OpenAI's Prism is based on LaTeX, a system researchers use to write papers with complex math. It aims to replace the separate tools scientists usually rely on, like text editors, PDF readers, reference managers and chatbots.
- Jan 28, 2026,
- Updated Jan 28, 2026 1:05 AM IST
OpenAI launched Prism on January 27, a new artificial intelligence (AI) workspace designed to help scientists write papers and collaborate more easily, as the company steps deeper into tools for research and healthcare.
The company described Prism as a “free, AI-native workspace for scientists to write and collaborate on research,” powered by GPT-5.2, which OpenAI calls its “most advanced model for mathematical and scientific reasoning,” OpenAI said in a blog post.
Prism is based on LaTeX, a system researchers use to write papers with complex math. It aims to replace the separate tools scientists usually rely on, like text editors, PDF readers, reference managers and chatbots.
“Much of the everyday work of research—drafting papers, revising arguments, managing equations and citations, and coordinating with collaborators —remains fragmented across disconnected tools,” OpenAI said in its blog. Prism, it added, is meant to address that fragmentation by putting everything in one place.
The product is free for anyone with a personal ChatGPT account and supports unlimited projects and collaborators. Versions for businesses, universities and enterprises will be rolled out later.
Instead of asking questions in a separate chat window, researchers can work directly inside their paper with AI. GPT-5.2 can help draft and revise text, reason through equations, suggest related academic papers from sources such as arXiv (an online repository of scientific studies) and even convert photos of handwritten formulas or diagrams into LaTeX code.
OpenAI said the system lets scientists “draft and revise papers with the full document as context, including surrounding text, equations, citations, figures, and overall structure,” and also “create, refactor, and reason over equations, citations, and figures, with AI that understands how those elements relate across the paper.”
The company said Prism grew out of Crixet, a cloud-based LaTeX platform it acquired and then rebuilt with AI at its core.
OpenAI framed Prism as part of a broader shift in how science gets done. “We’re still early, but it’s clear that AI will play a meaningful role in how science advances,” the company said. Drawing a parallel with programming, OpenAI said,“In 2025, AI changed software development forever. In 2026, we expect a comparable shift in science.”
The launch comes as AI companies increasingly target healthcare and life sciences as their next major growth area. Over the past weeks, OpenAI and rival Anthropic have both unveiled healthcare-focused products. OpenAI introduced ChatGPT Health, aimed at helping consumers understand medical information, while Anthropic rolled out Claude for Healthcare, a suite of tools built for hospitals, insurers, drugmakers and medical researchers.
The moves highlight a growing belief among AI firms that medicine and scientific research could become one of the most important applications of generative AI.
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OpenAI launched Prism on January 27, a new artificial intelligence (AI) workspace designed to help scientists write papers and collaborate more easily, as the company steps deeper into tools for research and healthcare.
The company described Prism as a “free, AI-native workspace for scientists to write and collaborate on research,” powered by GPT-5.2, which OpenAI calls its “most advanced model for mathematical and scientific reasoning,” OpenAI said in a blog post.
Prism is based on LaTeX, a system researchers use to write papers with complex math. It aims to replace the separate tools scientists usually rely on, like text editors, PDF readers, reference managers and chatbots.
“Much of the everyday work of research—drafting papers, revising arguments, managing equations and citations, and coordinating with collaborators —remains fragmented across disconnected tools,” OpenAI said in its blog. Prism, it added, is meant to address that fragmentation by putting everything in one place.
The product is free for anyone with a personal ChatGPT account and supports unlimited projects and collaborators. Versions for businesses, universities and enterprises will be rolled out later.
Instead of asking questions in a separate chat window, researchers can work directly inside their paper with AI. GPT-5.2 can help draft and revise text, reason through equations, suggest related academic papers from sources such as arXiv (an online repository of scientific studies) and even convert photos of handwritten formulas or diagrams into LaTeX code.
OpenAI said the system lets scientists “draft and revise papers with the full document as context, including surrounding text, equations, citations, figures, and overall structure,” and also “create, refactor, and reason over equations, citations, and figures, with AI that understands how those elements relate across the paper.”
The company said Prism grew out of Crixet, a cloud-based LaTeX platform it acquired and then rebuilt with AI at its core.
OpenAI framed Prism as part of a broader shift in how science gets done. “We’re still early, but it’s clear that AI will play a meaningful role in how science advances,” the company said. Drawing a parallel with programming, OpenAI said,“In 2025, AI changed software development forever. In 2026, we expect a comparable shift in science.”
The launch comes as AI companies increasingly target healthcare and life sciences as their next major growth area. Over the past weeks, OpenAI and rival Anthropic have both unveiled healthcare-focused products. OpenAI introduced ChatGPT Health, aimed at helping consumers understand medical information, while Anthropic rolled out Claude for Healthcare, a suite of tools built for hospitals, insurers, drugmakers and medical researchers.
The moves highlight a growing belief among AI firms that medicine and scientific research could become one of the most important applications of generative AI.
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