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APA 7th Edition Citation Style Guide

Citing Chatbots in APA

APA Style: Citing Specific AI Chats

Based on https://apastyle.apa.org/blog/cite-generative-ai-references?utm_source=chatgpt.com

How to Cite an AI Chat in APA (7th ed.)

If you share a chat link (with title, date, and URL), you can cite it like any other retrievable source. Use Author – Date – Title – Source format:

Reference template:

Author. (Year, Month Day). Title of chat [Generative AI chat]. Tool/Model. URL

In-text citations:

  • Parenthetical: (Author, Year)

  • Narrative: Author (Year)

Example references:

Key points:

  • Author = the company (e.g., OpenAI, Google, Anthropic).

  • Date = when the chat took place.

  • Title = the chat title in italics, with [Generative AI chat] in brackets.

  • Source = tool/model + URL.

👉 Mention in your paper’s text how the AI was used (e.g., in the Method section). You can also add a general note in the Author Note about AI use if required.

How to Cite an AI Tool Generally in APA (7th ed.)

Cite an AI tool generally when you want to reference the tool itself, not a specific chat. Use the software reference format:

Reference template:
Author. (Year). Tool name/Model [Description, e.g., Large language model]. URL

In-text citations:

  • Parenthetical: (Author, Year)

  • Narrative: Author (Year)

Example references:

Key points:

  • Author = the company (e.g., OpenAI, Google, Anthropic).

  • Date = year of the most recent update.

  • Title = the AI tool or model, in italics.

  • Description = usually “[Large language model].”

  • Source = URL of the tool.

👉 Mention in your text how you used the tool (e.g., I used ChatGPT (OpenAI, 2025) to edit my paper for clarity). You may also include a note about AI use in your Author Note if required.