‘Beginnings and endings’, every ending is the start of a new beginning, is what Arun Singh and I wrote as outgoing editors, in our farewell editorial for the British Journal of Ophthalmology, almost 12 years ago [1]. It was then an ‘ending’ for us; today for me, it is the start of a new ‘beginning’ as Editor-in-Chief of Eye. I step into this role with some trepidation, but largely with enthusiasm and confidence. ‘The past determines the future, the past is often the future’. My confidence stems from the immediate past of Eye, a solid foundation laid by Sobha Sivaprasad the outgoing Editor-in-Chief, Steve Beet, the Managing Editor of Eye and the small but formidable army of associate editors, sections editors board members and the extended family of reviewers and of course, most importantly, the contributors and readers. Building the future on this foundation together with the cohesive team that I inherit, will make the onward and upward journey seamless.

Journal editors have to deal with and juggle the often competing demands of the publisher, the reviewers, the authors and the readers. The publisher makes it all happen and while the authors and readers are the heart and soul of the journal, the reviewers, which include the entire editorial team, are the backbone, which keeps the science straight. Timely and thoughtful reviews are key to a journal’s success and author satisfaction. This enormous and often unsung effort deserves greater recognition and acknowledgement. I will explore the creation of a points system for reviewers, who can earn points and use them on journal items such as reprints, open access, colour images and other options, which in turn would mean that the reviewers will have to submit their work as authors, to the journal. It will be a tangible reward for the reviewers and enrich the journal, a win-win situation, if ever there was one. Fortuitously, in a few months there will also be a change at the helm of the College with the installation of Mohamed Elalfy as the new President who holds the College’s journal, Eye, in high esteem. I am positive that he will give this proposal due consideration in consultation with the College council and the publisher.

A big challenge facing scientific journals and all involved with them is the impact of artificial intelligence. There is no hiding the fact that authors and reviewers, who often play interchangeable roles, are beginning to use it. This is manifesting in both the manuscripts and their peer reviews submitted. One positive outcome is the improvement in language, punctuation and grammar. The negatives could be more sinister, some already known and others unknown that the future will reveal. AI can grab all that there is in cyberspace in the blink of an eye, but its ability to tell fake from fact, when it comes to assembling manuscripts, is rather limited. The entire scientific community will have to learn to understand it, adapt to it, accept it and learn to live with it. A key step in defence against its abuse, will be self discipline and self regulation.

Having aired one aim and one challenge, I have one comment to make. Thus far as a reader of, contributor to and reviewer for Eye I applaud and commend the Team, led by Sobha Sivaprasad, for bringing the journal to where it is today. However, the work on a journal never ends and there is far to go. Perhaps this is one beginning for which there is no ending!

Four lines that I composed for my previous farewell editorial, and are apt for this inaugural editorial, are reproduced below [1]. These will resonate equally with Sobha and me as I step into her shoes, and with those that came before her and those that will follow me:

Take forth into the future what you inherit with care

It’s yours not to own but to preserve and repair

Till the day another will claim the fayre

While you reap the reward of a privilege so rare

hsd