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Start with your syllabus and assignment instructions: a citation does not grant permission to use AI. If your instructor permits or requires it, disclose how you used the tool, cite AI-generated material you quote or incorporate as your assigned style directs, and verify and cite the original sources behind research claims.
What to do before citing AI
- Check permission. Read the course policy and assignment instructions, and ask your instructor if they do not say whether your intended use is allowed. UCLA’s teaching guide advises students to follow instructor-specific rules, and the University of Utah’s framework ties disclosure to permitted or required use: UCLA teaching guide and University of Utah framework.
- Identify the required style. Use the citation system specified for the assignment; MLA, APA, and Chicago do not handle AI interactions identically.
- Keep a record. Save the tool and model or version, the date, your prompt or chat title, the relevant output, and a stable conversation link if one is available. If there is no stable link, retain the prompt and response and follow your instructor’s directions for documenting them.
- Disclose process uses. If AI helped with brainstorming, outlining, editing, or translation but its wording does not appear in the submission, explain that contribution in the location your instructor or style requires.
- Cite incorporated output and verify research. Cite generated material you quote, paraphrase, or otherwise incorporate as required. For factual claims, consult the cited books, articles, datasets, or other original sources yourself and cite those sources directly.
These steps reflect guidance from the MLA Style Center, UCLA, and the University of Utah; your course’s rules determine what is permitted and where disclosures belong.
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How MLA, APA, and Chicago differ
| Style | How to document AI | What to do about process use and links |
|---|---|---|
| MLA | MLA says, “We do not recommend treating the AI tool as an author.” Describe the generated work or prompt, identify the tool as the container, give its version as specifically as possible, name the company, and provide the generation date. Include a general tool URL or stable conversation URL where appropriate. Cite AI-created content you quote, paraphrase, or incorporate. | Acknowledge functional uses, such as editing or translation, in a note, in the text, or another suitable place. MLA notes that generated output may be wrong, incomplete, or unclear in provenance. See the MLA Style Center guidance. |
| APA | UCLA’s guide describes APA’s September 2025 revision as using the company that created the tool as author. It distinguishes a stable, shareable conversation—which can be documented with a full reference—from a chat without a share link. | For a chat without a share link, UCLA summarizes APA’s approach as describing the use in the paper and preserving the prompt and output in an appendix. AI features embedded in ordinary software may not need citation. Confirm the current directions with UCLA’s guide and APA Style. |
| Chicago | UCLA summarizes the 18th edition of the Chicago Manual of Style (September 2024) as treating the tool as author in its examples. A chat belongs in the bibliography only if it has a publicly available URL; without one, document it in a note or in the text. | Chicago examples also provide a way to state that output was edited. Check the current Chicago Manual guidance for your assignment; see UCLA’s summary. |
These are style-specific summaries, not universal templates. Check the relevant style authority’s latest instructions and your instructor’s preferences before submitting; the evidence for APA and Chicago details here comes from UCLA’s guide rather than directly reviewed pages from those style authorities.
Do you cite the AI or the sources it found?
They serve different purposes. Document the AI interaction when you use its generated wording, ideas, or other content in a way your course or style requires you to cite. But do not use the AI’s citation as a substitute for the source behind a factual claim. Open the cited publication, confirm that it supports the claim, and cite that publication directly. MLA specifically advises citing generative AI when incorporating its created content and warns that output can be flawed or unclear in origin: MLA Style Center.
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If you cannot locate or verify a source suggested by a chatbot, do not cite it as if you had read it. Either find reliable evidence for the claim or remove or qualify it. You remain responsible for the accuracy of the submitted work, even when a tool produced the language or suggested the reference.
How to explain your AI use
A concise disclosure should say what tool you used and what you used it for. Add the model or version, date, prompt or chat information, and a share link when available if your course or style calls for those details. For example, the University of Utah offers a disclosure approach in which students state that AI output was reviewed, verified, and revised; follow your instructor’s expectations rather than treating one university’s example as a rule for every college. See the University of Utah framework.
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Keep the disclosure proportionate to the use. A brief statement may clarify brainstorming, outlining, or editing that did not result in copied wording; quoted or paraphrased generated material needs the citation treatment required by the assigned style. If the instructor requires a particular note, appendix, or form, use that instead of a generic statement.
What to retain in case questions come up
- The tool name, model or version if shown, and date used.
- The prompt or chat title and the relevant response, especially any text used in the assignment.
- A stable share link if available; if not, retain a copy of the prompt and response.
- The original research sources you consulted and the passages or data that support your claims.
- Your final disclosure and any instructor-specific instructions about AI.
Keeping this record makes it easier to describe your process accurately and show which research supports the final work. A citation or disclosure records use; it does not establish that generated content is accurate.
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