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Cite Sources: Artificial Intelligence

How to Cite AI

Always check with your instructor before using AI for your coursework. 

If you choose to use generative AI tools for course assignments or academic work, you need to acknowledge and cite the output of those tools just like any other resource. As with all things related to AI, the standards for citing AI-generated content are likely to evolve over the next few years. For now,the major style guides have released preliminary guidelines.

No matter which citation style you're using:

  • Do cite or acknowledge the outputs of generative AI tools when you use them in your work. This includes direct quotations and paraphrasing, as well as using the tool for tasks like editing, translating, idea generation, and data processing. 
  • Always locate and read any sources that are cited by an AI tool because: 
    • Generative AI tools can create fake citations.
    • These tools may cite a real piece of writing, but the cited content may be inaccurate. 
  • Make your best effort to cite AI-generated content, but remember that citation guidelines lag behind the technology and its use. If unsure, include a note describing what you did
  • When in doubt, remember that we cite sources for two primary purposes: first, to give credit to the author or creator; and second, to help others locate the sources you used in your research. Use these two principles to help make decisions about using and citing AI-generated content. 

What to include:

Basic Format: Author. (Date). Title (Month Day version) [Additional Descriptions]. Source

Author: The creator/author of the AI tool (e.g., OpenAI is the creator/author of ChatGPT)

Date: The year of the version.

Title: The name of the model/AI tool and the version number (e.g., ChatGPT 3.5)

Bracketed text: Description of the type of AI tool (e.g., Large language model)

Source: The source is the page where you can access the model or AI tool. When the publisher and author names are identical, omit the publisher name in the source element of the reference and proceed directly to the URL.

Example citation: OpenAI. (2023).ChatGPT 3.5 (Feb 13 version) [Large language model]. https://chat.openai.com

APA in-text citation: (OpenAI, 2023)

An example use case for generative AI:

When prompted with “Is the left brain right brain divide real or a metaphor?” the ChatGPT-generated text indicated that although the two brain hemispheres are somewhat specialized, “the notation that people can be characterized as ‘left-brained’ or ‘right-brained’ is considered to be an oversimplification and a popular myth” (OpenAI, 2023).


Reference:

OpenAI. (2023). ChatGPT (Mar 14 version) [Large language model]. https://chat.openai.com/chat 

Additional guidelines for referencing AI-generated content in APA Style:

  • In-text citations and references should follow the template for software in Section 10.10 of the Publication Manual (American Psychological Association, 2020, Chapter 10).
  • Although non-retrievable data and other works that cannot be recovered by readers in APA Style papers are usually cited as personal communications, with ChatGPT-generated text there is no person communicating and transcripts are not retained for future reference. As such, quoting ChatGPT’s text from a chat session is more like sharing an algorithm’s output. You will credit the author of the algorithm with a reference list entry and its corresponding in-text citation.

What to include: 

Basic format:  "Description of chat" prompt. Name of AI tool, version of AI tool, Company, Date of chat, URL

Author: We do not recommend treating the AI tool as an author. This recommendation follows the policies developed by various publishers, including the MLA’s journal PMLA. 

Title of Source: Describe what was generated by the AI tool. This may involve including information about the prompt in the Title of Source element if you have not done so in the text.

Title of Container: Use the Title of Container element to name the AI tool (e.g., ChatGPT).

Version: Name the version of the AI tool as specifically as possible. For example, the examples in this post were developed using ChatGPT 3.5, which assigns a specific date to the version, so the Version element shows this version date.

Publisher: Name the company that made the tool.

Date: Give the date the content was generated.

Location: Give the general URL for the tool.

An example use case for generative AI:

When asked to describe the symbolism of the green light in The Great Gatsby, ChatGPT provided a summary about optimism, the unattainability of the American dream, greed, and covetousness. However, when further prompted to cite the source on which that summary was based, it noted that it lacked “the ability to conduct research or cite sources independently” but that it could “provide a list of scholarly sources related to the symbolism of the green light in The Great Gatsby” (“In 200 words”).

Works Cited List Entry:

"In 200 words, describe the symbolism of the green light in The Great Gatsby” follow-up prompt to list sources. ChatGPT, 13 Feb. version, OpenAI, 9 Mar. 2023, chat.openai.com/chat.

In-Text Citation Example: (“In 200 words”)

Additional guidelines for referencing AI-generated content in MLA style: 

  • Cite the AI tool when you incorporate its output into your work. This includes direct quotations, images, and data, as well as paraphrased content.
  • If you use an AI tool for some other purpose, such as translating, editing, or generating an outline, include a note about this somewhere in your paper.
  • The MLA views AI-generated content as a source with no author, so you'll use the title of the source in your in-text citations, and in your reference list. The title you choose should be a brief description of the AI-generated content, such as an abbreviated version of the prompt you used. 
  • If you create a shareable link to the chat transcript, include that instead of the tool's URL.

What to include:

Basic format: [Prompt] on [date], by [name of tool/software], url (if available)

Prompt: prompt used when utilizing ChatGPT or other AI

Date: date the content was generated

Software/Tool: AI software used to create the content (e.g., ChatGPT) and the software’s publisher or developer (e.g., OpenAI)

URL: include the url, if available, of a publicly archived copy of the conversation

An example use case for generative AI:

The following definition of a multi-site case study comparison method was generated on September 9, 2024, by ChatGPT-4o, using the prompt, Explain what is a multi-site case study comparison method using recent published examples: "It is a qualitative research approach that involves examining and analyzing multiple case studies across different sites or locations to identify patterns, similarities, and differences."

Note example:
1. Response to “Explain what is a multi-site case study comparison method using recent published examples," ChatGPT-4o, OpenAI, September 9, 2024, https://chat.openai.com/share/90b8137d-ff1c-4c0c-b123-2868623c4am4. 

Additional guidelines for referencing AI-generated content in Chicago Manual of Style:

  • Do not include AI chatbots in the bibliography or reference list. Because personal communications are non-retrievable, they do not require a full citation at the end of the paper. Rather, citations should only be footnotes, endnotes, or parenthetical citations.
  • If you are required or would like to include generative AI citations in your bibliography or reference list, cite it under the name of the publisher or developer rather than the name of the tool and include a publicly available URL (see also 14.104).

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