Guidelines for citing generative AI have been given in the APA Style Blog.
McAdoo, T. (2024, Feb. 23). How to cite ChatGPT. APA Style Blog. https://apastyle.apa.org/blog/how-to-cite-chatgpt
This is interim advice only and subject to change.
• In your text, provide the prompt used, followed by a quote of any text that was generated in response that you are using.
• If the text that Copilot generates is not retrievable or sharable, then it falls into the catch-all “personal communication” category, where you cite with an in-text only citation: “(Microsoft, personal communication, January 16, 2023).”
• Consider making the Copilot conversation retrievable by including the text as an appendix or as online supplemental material.
If you do so, then readers may be referred to the appendix or the online supplemental material (where the Copilot response may be contextualized) when the Copilot conversation is cited.
It would be good practice to describe, in the narrative or a note, the prompt that generated the specific Copilot response.
Note: It is likely that the Information about using and referencing Copilot and other generative AI tools in assignments and publications will continue to be updated. We recommend checking this page regularly to keep up with any changes.
We recommend that you base the reference for generative AI content on the referencing guidance for
Rather than citing Generative AI as a source of information, you would, instead, be citing the use of a tool - Generative AI.
References should provide clear and accurate information for each source and should identify where they have been used in your work.
Generative AI tools such as Copilot cannot accurately cite their own sources.
Any references they provide may be false or non-existent – you should always check the original source for any references that are generated.
If AI has been used to summarise works, then this should be noted in your methodology.
This information is based on La Trobe Referencing Generative AI Guide
App/Software
Microsoft. (2023). Microsoft Copilot for Microsoft 365 [Large language model]. https://copilot.microsoft.com/
OpenAI. (2022). DALL-E (Version 2) [Artificial intelligence system]. https://openai.com/product/dall-e-2
Microsoft. (2024, January 17). [Copilot response to a prompt about the significance of nature in Robert Frost’s poetry]. https://copilot.microsoft.com/
If the conversation is saved, is shareable, or otherwise retrievable - cite Copilot as App/ Software, otherwise cite as personal communications.
For ease of use, this guide divides reference list entries into different formats.
Select the format you require from the Reference List Entries menu or select from the links below: