For an IEEE ChatGPT citation, start with what the tool contributed and where it appears. Then check which records your publication requires. An acknowledgment describes the use, a citation identifies the source, and a prompt and output record lets readers inspect the exchange.
Identify what the AI contributed
Put the chat beside your manuscript and mark the words, images or code you kept. Suppose you asked ChatGPT for labels for a packet loss chart and kept one suggestion. Record the original suggestion and point to the caption where it appears. If you also kept a paragraph or a code snippet, record those separately. A caption label and a generated explanation belong in separate notes, even if they came from the same chat.
Separate that work from spelling corrections to sentences you wrote. If a rewrite introduced an explanation of why packets were dropped, compare the new explanation with your observations. The tool may have added a cause you never measured. Remove unsupported claims or find evidence for them before deciding how to disclose the rewrite.
When ChatGPT recommends an article, look up the article and read the passage you intend to cite. A reference to the conversation documents the suggestion, while the original publication supports the technical claim if the evidence fits. Use the reference audit guide to check that source.
Check the publication policy
IEEE’s author guidance requires an acknowledgment when an article incorporates AI-generated material, including prose, figures, images and code. Identify the system, name the affected sections and explain how extensively it contributed. The same guidance generally puts editing and grammar enhancement outside that requirement and recommends disclosure for those uses.
Open the instructions for the journal or conference that will receive the paper. IEEE Access, for example, also instructs authors to cite the AI system in the sections that contain generated text. If you are preparing an assignment, check what your course permits and how it wants AI use recorded. Ask the editor or instructor when the instructions leave your case unclear. Check permission before you keep the output in the submission. A citation records its use.
| Record | Where it goes | What it tells the reader |
|---|---|---|
| AI use disclosure | Acknowledgments or the destination’s designated location | Which system contributed, where it appears and what the author did with it |
| Numbered citation and reference | At the affected passage and in the reference list when required | Which system or output the passage refers to |
| Prompt and output record | Approved share link, appendix or supplement | What the model received and returned, with enough context to check the excerpt |
Preserve the exact output or appendix
Save the prompt and the response you used before editing either. Include any earlier turn that supplied definitions or constraints. Record the date of the interaction separately from the date you accessed a share link. If you regenerate an answer, save it as a separate record. Mark which reply supplied the exact wording in the draft.
Use a share link only if the destination permits it and the conversation can be made public. Open it from a signed out window to check what a reader can see. If you use an appendix, label the original response and any excerpt you kept. Review the material for confidential data before sharing it, and mark any redactions.
Teaching record for Appendix A
This simulated exchange demonstrates the record format. The date and output below are illustrative. We did not run a separate ChatGPT session or create a public chat link for it.
- System and model
- ChatGPT by OpenAI in the scenario. Exact model version unavailable.
- Interaction date
- November 5, 2026 in the scenario.
- Purpose and use
- Suggest an axis label for a hypothetical packet loss plot. The example author uses the returned label in Fig. 2.
- Prompt
- Suggest one short y-axis label for the percentage of transmitted packets that were lost. Return the label only.
- Complete example output
- Packet loss (%)
For a real exchange, copy the model label from the interface or run record if it is available. Use “model version unavailable” when you cannot verify it. Give the saved exchange a stable label, such as Appendix A, so the disclosure points to the same record as the reference entry.
Write a scoped disclosure and reference
For the Fig. 2 example, a short acknowledgment is enough to describe the contribution. “We used OpenAI’s ChatGPT to propose the y-axis label for Fig. 2 and retained the suggested wording. The prompt and response are in Appendix A.” Describe additional use if it occurred. An acknowledgment limited to one label would be incomplete if the same tool drafted the surrounding explanation.
When deciding how to reference ChatGPT in IEEE style, follow the destination’s instructions. RMIT adapts software referencing and uses an output link when available. Its appendix option uses the general tool URL and points to the saved exchange. The University of Auckland offers an interim private communication pattern using the tool name. Treat both as local guidance and use the format your editor or instructor specifies.
[1] ChatGPT (2026), OpenAI. Accessed: Nov. 5, 2026. [Online]. Available: https://chatgpt.com/. See Appendix A for prompt and output.[1] ChatGPT, private communication, Nov. 2026.If your destination requires a numbered citation, put it next to the generated material, such as the Fig. 2 caption in this example. Use the next number in order of first appearance and match it to the reference list. If the object you used is a versioned package or repository, see the software citation guide for that separate source. This site’s generator formats references. Authors verify the output and write the disclosure.