Citing AI-Generated Outputs

When citing AI-generated content using APA style, you should treat that content as the output of an algorithm, with the author of the content being the company or organization that created the model. For example, when citing ChatGPT, the author would be OpenAI, the company that created ChatGPT.

Here are some guidelines for referencing AI-generated content in APA style:

• • When you reference this content directly in your text, you should include an in-text citation, and an associated entry in your reference list.

• • If you have used AI tools for some part of your research, you should describe that use in your introduction or methods section, and include the prompts that you used.

When referencing shorter passages of text, you can include that text directly in your paper. You might also include an appendix or link to an online supplement that includes the full text of long responses from a generative AI tool.

Format:

Author. (Date). Name of tool (Version of tool) [Large language model]. URL

Example:

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

In-Text Citation Example:

(OpenAI, 2023)

Chicago style requires that you cite AI-generated content in your work by including either a note or a parenthetical citation, but advises you not to include that source in your bibliography or reference list.  The reason given for this is that, because you cannot provide a link to the conversation or session with the AI tool, you should tread that content as you would a phone call or private conversation. However, AI tools are starting to introduce functionality that does allow a user to generate a sharable link to a chat conversation, so this guidance from the Chicago Manual of Style may change.

Here are some general guidelines for referencing AI-generated content in Chicago style:

• • Treat the AI tool as the author of the content.

• • If possible, describe the prompt used to generate the content in the text, but if that approach doesn’t work, you can include that information in a footnote or endnote.

• • The date used in your citation will be the date the content was generated.

Format:

Author, Title, Publisher, Date, URL for the tool.

• • Example (if information about the prompt has been included within the text of your paper): Text generated by ChatGPT, OpenAI, March 7, 2023, https://chat.openai.com/chat.
  • Example (including information about the prompt): ChatGPT, response to “Explain how to make pizza dough from common household ingredients,” OpenAI, March 7, 2023, https://chat.openai.com/chat.

Source:

Chicago Manual of Style, Citing Content Developed or Generated by Artificial Intelligence – Released in spring 2023

Author: Do not treat the AI as an author. MLA is reserving that for human authors. Omit the author section of the citation.

Title of Source: Describe what was generated by the AI tool. If you have not included information about the prompt in the text of your essay, you need to do that here.

Title of Container: The name of the AI tool.

Version: Name the version of the AI tool as specifically as possible.

Date: Include the date the content was generated.

Location: Give the URL for the tool. If possible, give the URL for the specific content. (Note: the style guide post is slightly out-of-date; you can now send someone a URL of your ChatGPT conversation. This is the URL you should use in your citation.)

Format: “Prompt text” prompt. AI tool, version of the tool, company that made the tool, and date the text was generated. URL.

Examples:

• • In-Text Citation Example : (“Describe the symbolism”)
  • Bibliography Example: “Describe the symbolism of the green light in the book The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald” prompt. ChatGPT, 13 Feb. version, OpenAI, 8 Mar.