SPapers was founded in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and is operating from the Research Triangle Park in North Carolina. It is a privately owned research service with the mission of helping scientists showcase their research effectively and connect with readers. A beta version of the SPapers website was introduced in July 2013. It featured an application that allows authors of research articles to create a “home page” for their article. In April 2016, SPapers introduced a peer review system that allows authors to connect directly with peers and get their papers peer reviewed. Unlike most traditional peer review systems involving journal editors and anonymous reviewers, this peer review system is direct and transparent—it connects authors to reviewers of their choice.