As AI tools evolve and change, the way we cite them will evolve and change. In addition to reviewing the examples below, please feel free to make an appointment with a librarian to further discuss how to incorporate these tools into your research appropriately.
APA formatting considers interactions with ChatGPT as "personal communication" because the results of your interaction are not retrievable for other users. In addition to citing your use of text generated by AI, APA also suggests that you attach an appendix to your paper with the full text of your interaction with the tool so that your reader has access to the exact prompts and responses.
As with most APA citations, when citing ChatGPT it's important to include the key elements of a citation: Author, Date, Title, and Source. For ChatGPT the author is considered to be the company that runs the tool, Open AI. The date should reflect the year of the version of ChatGPT that you used. APA states that for the title, you should use ChatGPT followed by the version of the model in parenthesis. The version of the ChatGPT model being used can be found on their website under the box where you type your prompts. APA indicated that you can also bracket text to the title if you feel additional information is needed to explain what's being cited, you'll see this in the example below. Lastly, for source you should include a link to the thing you are citing. OpenAI is rolling out sharable links to individual ChatGPT transactions and if you have that option you should share a link directly to your specific interaction. However, if you do not have the option to make a shareable link, you can cite the general website for ChatGPT.
Here is an example of how to cite an interaction with ChatGPT in-text and and in your Reference List.
In-text
In response to a prompt of "What are the differences between a crocodile and an alligator?", ChatGPT generated the following five distinctions: Snout Shape, Teeth Visibility, Habitat, Geographical Distribution, and Behavior. (OpenAI, 2023).
Reference
OpenAI. (2023). ChatGPT (May 24 version) [Large language AI model]. https://chat.openai.com/
This information and example citation were adapted from the APA Style Blog entry, "How to cite ChatGPT" by Timothy McAdoo created on April 7, 2023. If you'd like more information you can read the blog post here: https://apastyle.apa.org/blog/how-to-cite-chatgpt
When citing a generative AI tool, like ChatGPT, in MLA style it is recommend that you follow the MLA Core Elements template: Author, Title of Source, Title of Container, Version, Publisher, Date, Location. MLA does not recommend citing an AI tool as an author so this element is skipped in MLA style citations. The title of the source should reflect the prompt that you used to start your interaction with the tool. The title of the container will identify the tool that you used, so in this example ChatGPT. Version should indicate the version of the tool you used when you interacted with it. Publisher will indicate the company that made the tool. Date should reflect the date on which you generated the content. Location should give the URL to the actual item that was created but if that isn't possible, which is often the case with generative AI tools, then a general link to the tool is sufficient.
See below for an example of in-text and Works Cited list citations for a ChatGPT response to the prompt, "What are the differences between crocodiles and alligators?".
In-Text
"Crocodiles and alligators are both semi-aquatic reptiles belonging to the Crocodylia order. While they share similarities and belong to the same reptilian group, there are several noticeable difference between them," ("What are the differences").
Works Cited
"What are the differences between a crocodile and an alligator?". ChatGPT, 24 May version, OpenAI, 26 June 2023, https://chat.openai.com/.
This information and example citation were adapted from the Ask the MLA section of the MLA Style Center website, "How do I cite generative AI in MLA style?" created on March 17, 2023. If you'd like more information you can read the blog post here: https://style.mla.org/citing-generative-ai/
To look at how the Chicago Style handles citing ChatGPT, it's good to remember that there are two options for citing within Chicago Style, Notes/Bib or Author/Date. When looking at the core elements of a citation, Chicago style considers ChatGPT as the author of the content, the date should reflect the date the content was generated, Open AI is considered the Publisher of the content, and the URL points to the ChatGPT website. Since users are unable to link to the actual exchange in ChatGPT, in Chicago style the URL is considered non-essential and can be left off the citation. Lastly, The Chicago Manual of Style feels that in most cases only an in-text citation is necessary to acknowledge the use of an AI tool. However, this is where we see differences between Notes/Bib style and Author/Date, so let's look at each option specifically.
Notes/Bib
For most informal writing, acknowledging that you used ChatGPT or any other AI tool in your text, should be sufficient. For more formal writing, like student research papers or journal articles the in-text citation should be accompanied by a numbered endnote or footnote.
In-text
These five differences between crocodiles and alligators were generated by ChatGPT: snout shape, teeth visibility, habitat, geographical distribution, and behavior.1
Footnote/Endnote
1. Text generated by ChatGPT, June 26, 2023, Open AI.
If you have not included the prompt you used for ChatGPT in the text of your paper, you should include it in your note.
Author/Date
For Author/Date style, information from ChatGPT is considered the same as other information you would gain through personal communication meaning that your exact interaction with ChatGPT is unavailable to any other users. In Chicago style, personal communications are only cited in-text, not on the Bibliography/Reference List. All the relevant information about the use of ChatGPT should be shared parenthetically in-text.
In-Text
When prompted "What are the differences between a crocodile and an alligator?", ChatGPT generated the following distinctions: snout shape, teeth visibility, habitat, geographical distribution, and behavior, (June 26, 2023).
Since I included my prompt and the name of the tool in my text, I didn't need to include it in the parenthesis. You may need to put that information in the parenthesis depending on how you write your text.
This information and example citation were adapted from the Style Q&A section of The Chicago Manual of Style Online website, "How do you recommend citing content developed or generated by artificial intelligence, such as ChatGPT?". If you'd like more information you can read the FAQ here: https://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/qanda/data/faq/topics/Documentation/faq0422.html