This page covers how to cite and reference AI sources, as well as how to acknowledge the use of AI tools in your assignments and research.
Before using any AI tools in your research it is necessary to:
If you want to quote or paraphrase information that you have got from using generative AI, it is necessary to cite it as you would any other pre-existing source.
Citing AI sources within your work
For the purpose of citation, Cite Them Right categorises three types of AI content:
Correctly citing your AI source will depend on which of these three types it falls into.
If the content is available only to you – e.g. a conversation with a generative AI, this is cited as a personal communication. Check with relevant academic staff to see if you need to provide a copy of this communication as a transcript.
In-text Citation
(Name of AI, Year)
Example:
(OpenAI, 2024)
Reference List
Name of AI (Year) Medium of communication to Receiver of communication, Day Month of communication.
Example:
Open AI (2024) ChatGPT response to John Stephens, 2 April.
If you have found pre-existing AI content online, and want to cite it, you will need to use the AI company as the Author of the source.
In-text Citation
(Name of AI company, Year)
Example:
(Shutterstock AI, 2023)
Reference list
Name of AI (Year) Title of work [Medium]. Available at: DOI or URL (Accessed: date).
Example:
Shutterstock AI (2023) Photo of pond with lotus flower [Digital art]. Available at: https://www.shutterstock.com/image-generated/photo-pond-lotus-flower-2252080005 (Accessed: 31 May 2024).
Some generative AI platforms allow your AI content to be made available to your reader via a shareable URL or online repository, or via your own cloud storage such as CJBS OneDrive.
In-text Citation
(Name of AI company, Year)
Example
(Google, 2024)
Reference List
Name of AI company (Year) AI generated by [Medium] by … with prompt '...', Day Month. Available at: URL (Accessed: date).
Example
Google (2024) AI-generated text by Gemini with prompt ‘In the UK what are the advantages of an organisation becoming a charitable incorporated organisation (CIO)? Provide references to support the advantages’, 23 May. Available at: https://aiarchives.org/id/pEBovpbrWSXwNXJ1MRnr (Accessed: 31 May 2024).
It is important to evaluate the information and data you find via generative AI. If you intend to quote statistics or information sourced via generative AI, see if you can find other sources which corroborate this data. If possible, go to the original source and check its validity. You can find guidance on evaluating AI content here: https://libguides.cam.ac.uk/cjbsguide/GenAI
All information and examples from Cite Them Right.
Guidance on citing AI tools and content is being regularly updated. Always check Cite Them Right for the most up to date information.
When submitting your work you will likely be asked to acknowledge any use of AI within the assignment.
This mostly likely to be a statement in the appendices of your work. The format of this may differ slightly depending on the type of assignment and the member of faculty setting it.
When completing your declaration you'll need to discuss:
The statement may take the form of a table similar to the one below:
| Name of AI Tool | What the AI tool has been used for | Purpose |
| Perplexity | Finding resources for a literature review | Searching for scholarly literature, identifying key themes in found literature |
| Chat GPT ver. 4.0 | Generating keywords | Identifying relevant terms to be used as keywords when searching for literature |
It is important to check with the relevant faculty members about their expectations surrounding the declaration of AI. Depending on the assignment and member of faculty, more information may be required. This can include the prompts used, transcripts of AI discussions, and reasoning behind using an AI tool.
Best practice