AI is easy to cite, but it's different from a book, article, video, etc. because of the nature of the tool.
I. AI tools are not authors, though some format styles treat them as such. Outputs use data from a wide range of sources.
II. Outputs generated by AI change based on the prompt and the version of the tool.
III. Outputs are typically not retrievable, meaning if you share the URL of a page with an output, others won't have access to the content or conversation history. This is partly because AI interactions are treated as user data, which often requires a login or paid subscription to use.
Because your AI interaction isn't retrievable, you won't be able to cite it for factual information. It is recommended for creative purposes (e.g. images) and disclosing that you used AI to create things like templates and outlines. You can create a retrievable URL for an AI conversation with third-party tools, but this is not an expectation for the following style guides.
Template: Author. (Date).Title (Month Day version) [Additional Descriptions]. Source
Example: Copilot. (2024). Ballad about a falcon jet skiing. (December 8 version) [Large language model] Retrieved from Microsoft Copilot. copilot.microsoft.com.
Template: “Text of prompt” prompt. name of AI tool, Day Month version, company that made the AI tool, Day Month Year, source.
Example: “Write a ballad about a falcon jet skiing” prompt. Copilot, 8 Dec. version, Microsoft Copilot, 8 Dec. 2024, copilot.microsoft.com.
If the prompt is explicitly included in your writing then your footnote may look like this:
Footnote template: 1. Text generated by name of AI tool, Month Day, Year, company that made the AI tool, source.
Example: 1. Text generated by Copilot, December 8, 2024, Microsoft Copilot, copilot.microsoft.com
If the prompt is not explicitly included in your writing then it is best to include it in the footnote:
Footnote template: 1. Name of AI tool, response to "your prompt here" Month Day, Year, company that made the AI tool, source.
Example: 1. Copilot, response to "Write a ballad about a falcon jet skiing" December 8, 2024, Microsoft Copilot, copilot.microsoft.com