Open Research Assistant
A multi-source tool for finding where a text’s full version actually lives.
View on GitHub →Sources
- Open Archives
- OpenAlex
- Semantic Scholar
- arXiv
- Zotero
Modes
- Keyword Search
- Reading List (LLM-generated)
Why this exists
LLMs are increasingly used to summarize and mediate access to knowledge. This tool takes the opposite position: it assumes people should still read the full text. Leveraging the LLM’s capability in synthesizing across vast sources, it is here to navigate toward where answers might live, not to provide them.
Open Research Assistant aggregates open data across OpenAlex, Semantic Scholar, arXiv, and open archives, and surfaces where the full text actually lives. Two modes: keyword search sends your query directly to all sources in parallel, without modification. Reading list mode lets a model of your choice (a locally run Ollama model or a cloud API) generate a reading list from your stated intent, then retrieves those specific texts from the sources. In both modes, results are checked against your Zotero library so you know what you already have.
This tool is a prototype contributing to imagining an open, digitized world where access to knowledge has no bars, and people are still motivated to find answers for themselves.