Generative Artificial Intelligence: Citing Your Use of GenAI

USask Library Guide

Citation Considerations and GenAI

Citations serve multiple purposes in academic writing:

Citations allow you to acknowledge and give credit to the original authors or creators of ideas, data, and information you've used in your work.
Proper citation is essential for avoiding plagiarism and maintaining academic integrity. By clearly indicating which ideas you borrowed from others, you demonstrate intellectual honesty.
Citations lend authority to your work by showing that your arguments are supported by reputable sources and existing research. This builds trust with your readers and establishes credibility.
Citations provide a way for your readers to locate and verify the referenced material, allowing them to delve deeper into the subject if desired.
By citing others, you are contributing to the scholarly conversation, placing your work within the broader context of academic discourse in your field.

No matter the citation style you use, when it comes to generative AI (GenAI), make sure that you

verify GenAI outputs. If the outputs provide sources, review them; GenAI tools can fabricate sources and generate improper citations.
cite outputs and disclose the uses of GenAI tools (e.g., generating ideas, data processing, paraphrasing, editing, or translation).

Regardless of style guide recommendations, always consult with your instructor, supervisor, or publisher when considering whether to use generative AI for an assignment, academic project, or publication. Furthermore, if you are co-authoring a work, check in with any collaborators or group members to co-create a documentation process and agree upon citation practices (see the section Using AI : Writing tab --> Writing with Co-authors or Group Members).

As AI technologies develop, standards for citing their outputs and uses are expected to change. Some style guides have issued initial guidelines on citing AI-generated content. This section provides examples from five different citation styles and advice for citing non-textual outputs.

Citation Styles and GenAI

American Psychological Association (APA) Style Guidelines

Note: Always follow your instructor’s requirements first, even if they differ from these guidelines.

When citing GenAI outputs, such as text generated by tools such as ChatGPT or Grammarly, the APA recommends that authors:

treat the content as an algorithmic output, and
credit the company or organization that created the AI model as the author.

For more information, see the APA Style Blog: How to Cite ChatGPT and the APA Journals policy on generative AI guidance.

In-Text Citation Format

For a direct quotation or paraphrase or to cite the tool itself, use the following format for in-text citations:

Parenthetical citation: (OpenAI, 2025) or (Grammarly, 2025)
Narrative citation: OpenAI (2025) or Grammarly (2025)

Reference List Entry Format

Format

Author. (Year of the Version). Title of the Tool (Version if applicable) [Tool description if applicable]. Source/URL

Example

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

Other Guidance

Research Papers

The APA recommends that authors disclose how they utilized AI tools and which specific tools they employed in the Methods section. For example, this disclosure can happen when authors have used AI tools to

analyze, refine, visualize, or format data
create or refine code
create or edit research design elements, data, or results

The APA also advises authors to keep AI prompts and outputs for potential inquiries or follow-ups.

Literature Reviews or Essays

The APA recommends that authors

describe in the Introduction how GenAI was used,
include in the Introduction prompts, keywords, and type of AI tool used when AI was used to create a resource list on a topic to inform a literature review, metasynthesis, or meta-analysis, and
provide in the Body of the work the used, type of AI tool, as well as any pertinent outputs.

Appendix

You can provide the text of your chat session with GenAI in an appendix, but be sure to refer to the appendix at least one time in the body of your work.

Images, Tables, and Figures

Ensure that your prompts and the tool used are included in the section featuring figures, tables, or images (for instance, in the Results section), and retain the output for any potential inquiries.

Translation or Extensive Copyediting

If you used an AI tool to translate or to conduct extensive copyediting, add a general note in the author note, and name the tool used.

Quoting

If your readers cannot retrieve your chat sessions, describe your interactions.

Example sentence describing a chat session:

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 notion that people can be characterized as 'left-brained' or 'right-brained' is considered to be an oversimplification and a popular myth" (OpenAI, 2023).

Source for the above example:

McAdoo, T. (September, 2025). How to cite ChatGPT. APA Style. https://apastyle-apa-org.cyber.usask.ca/blog/how-to-cite-chatgpt

Further Guidance from the APA

American Psychological Association. (2025, September 8). Citing generative AI in APA Style: Part 1—Reference formats. APA Style Blog. https://apastyle-apa-org.cyber.usask.ca/blog/cite-generative-ai-references

American Psychological Association. (2025, September 8). Citing generative AI in APA Style: Part 2—Search and software. APA Style Blog. https://apastyle-apa-org.cyber.usask.ca/blog/cite-generative-ai-search-software

American Psychological Association. (2025, September 8). Citing generative AI in APA Style: Part 3—Uses allowed and ownership considerations. APA Style Blog. https://apastyle-apa-org.cyber.usask.ca/blog/cite-generative-ai-allowed

Modern Language Association (MLA) Style Guidelines

Note: Always follow your instructor’s requirements first, even if they differ from these guidelines.

The Modern Language Association (MLA) Style Center states that writers should:

cite GenAI tools each time you “paraphrase, quote, or incorporate into your own work into any content (whether text, image, data, or other) that was created by it.”
acknowledge the use of GenAI tools if you use them for such practical tasks as editing or translating text.

For detailed directions and examples, including citation of images, visit How do I cite generative AI in MLA style?

In-text Citation Format

Direct quotation

Further, a comparison of the final paragraphs of Magarshack’s and Garnett’s translations of Dostoyevsky’s Бесы reveals that Magarshack’s shows a “more modern and fluent style” (“compare the styles of these two paragraphs”).

Paraphrase

Further, a comparison of the final paragraphs of Magarshack’s and Garnett’s translations of Dostoyevsky’s Бесы reveals Magarshack’s style to be more fluid and recognizable to modern readers (“compare the styles of these two paragraphs”).

Note that if prompts are too long for a citation, they can be abbreviated (for example, “Compare styles”).

Works Cited Entry Format

Refer to the MLA core elements of citations to create citations for your Works Cited list:

Author: do not treat AI tools as authors (MLA states that AI tools should not be treated as authors even if they generate whole creative works (e.g., poems or stories); instead, these works should be cited descriptively with titles or prompt descriptions)
Title of Source: describe the AI-generated output in quotation marks, followed by the word "prompt."
Title of the Container: Name the tool in italics – e.g., ChatGPT
Version: provide the specific version of the tool, and if it includes a date, use a Day Month Year format.
Publisher: The AI company or developer – e.g., OpenAI
Publication date: provide the date you generated the content, using the Day Month Year format (e.g., 12 June 2025),
Location: If you have a shareable URL for the chat session, provide it, and if you do not, give the general URL for the tool (e.g., chat.openai.com/chat)

Examples:

1. "Examples of potential harm reduction initiatives" prompt. ChatGPT, 23 Mar. version, OpenAI, 4 Mar. 2024, chat.openai.com/chat.

2. "Note all instances of the word ‘dark’" prompt. ChatGPT, 24 May 2024 version, OpenAI, 27 June 2024. chat.openai.com/chat.

Chicago Manual of Style (CMOS) 18th edition Guidelines

Note: Always follow your instructor’s requirements first, even if they differ from these guidelines.

Quick Rules

Only cite AI in your bibliography if a public, shareable link exists.
No public link? Treat the AI output as personal communication. Cite in a footnote (notes-bibliography) or in-text parenthetical (author-date). Do not include in the bibliography.
Shareable links can be created with tools like AI Archives.
Always include prompt details if they provide helpful context.

Footnotes-Bibliography / Turabian version of CMOS

If the prompt is already in the text:

1. Text generated by ChatGPT, OpenAI, March 7, 2025, https://chat.openai.com/chat.

If the prompt is not included in the text:

First footnote

1. ChatGPT, from response to “compare the common language in the following Confederation speeches by John A. Macdonald and George-Étienne Cartier,” OpenAI, June 27, 2025.

Subsequent footnotes

2. ChatGPT, “compare the common language."

Bibliography Entry (Only when a public link exists)

ChatGPT. “Response to a request to summarize research on the ethics of artificial intelligence.” OpenAI. March 7, 2023. https://aiarchives.org/id/e xampleonly

Author-Date version of CMOS

Parenthetical Example

(Text generated by ChatGPT, OpenAI, March 7, 2025, https://chat.openai.com/chat)

Note that you can also include details about the prompt.

Bibliography Entry (When a Public Link Exists)

ChatGPT. 2025. “Response to a request to summarize research on the ethics of artificial intelligence.” OpenAI. March 7, 2025. https://aiarchives.org/id/exampleonly

Other Guidance

For more information on citing content generated by AI, see the Chicago Manual Style Q&A

Vancouver Style Guidelines

Note: Always follow your instructor’s requirements first, even if they differ from these guidelines.

As of September 2025, Vancouver Style editors have not yet explicitly addressed how to cite AI-generated content. However, generative AI (GenAI) outputs can be characterized as “personal communications” and “non-recoverable data,” so they should not be included in the reference list.

If writing for publication, be sure to check individual publishers’ guidelines on citation and questions of authorship. When writing in academic contexts, follow the directions of your instructors or supervisors.

In-Text Citation

AI-generated content can be referenced in the text using the format below:

Type of Communication, Communicator, Date (DMY)

You can also include specific details, such as the prompt. For example, “In a discussion with OpenAI's ChatGPT (15 July 2024), ...”

A chat output provided a suggested outline for the literature review section (ChatGPT response, prompt for "Outline for literature review on the impact of telemedicine on chronic disease management", 15 June 2024).

Other Guidance

For a complete guide to Vancouver style referencing, refer to Citing Medicine by the National Library of Medicine (NLM).

IEEE Style Guidelines

Note: Always follow your instructor’s requirements first, even if they differ from these guidelines.

Do not cite AI-generated content unless directed by a publisher, instructor, or supervisor. Such content is typically considered “private communication” or “non-recoverable material,” so it is not provided with a citation number and should not be included in the references.

If writing for publication, be sure to check the publisher's guidelines on citation and questions of authorship. When writing in academic contexts, students should follow the directions of their instructors or supervisors.

In-text Citation

Author’s name (Initials, Surname), private communication, Abbrev. Month, year).

Example:

A chat output provided …. (OpenAI’s ChatGPT, private communication, 25 June 2024).

Reference List

No citation is needed.

Additional Guidance

See the IEEE Reference Guide, 2023, section Q re: "private communication."

Non-textual outputs (images, music, figures, etc.)

Note: Always follow your instructor’s requirements first, even if they differ from these guidelines.

APA, MLA and the Chicago Manual of Style editors have provided guidelines for citing AI-generated visuals and other works. Non-textual outputs, such as images, music, or figures, must be properly cited.

Additional Guidance

University of Toronto Libraries. (2024). Art, artists, and copyright - Artificial intelligence for image research.

Vyas, B. (2022). Ethical implications of generative AI in art and the media. International Journal for Multidisciplinary Research, 4(1), 1-11.