Check an AI answer
Compare the claim with evidence
Choose evidence that can test a specific claim.
You will know why plausible answers and citations still need checking.
An AI hallucination is output that sounds plausible but is invented or wrong. It can include a false date, an incorrect calculation or a source that does not support the claim. Checking means comparing important details with evidence outside the answer, not only asking the same tool whether it is sure.
Check the detail that matters
How this works
Identify the claim you plan to use: a date, opening time, procedure, quotation or total. Find an appropriate source independently, such as the organisation’s current page for its opening hours or the app’s official help for a control. Check the date, location and version to see whether the evidence applies.
If an answer cites a source, open the actual page only through a route you can inspect, and find the relevant passage. A real link can still support a different claim. Asking the AI to reconsider may help find a problem, but it is not an independent check.
Recalculate important numbers with a calculator or spreadsheet and compare the inputs, not just the total. If sources conflict or the answer concerns a consequential decision, pause and seek suitable expert or official guidance. Keep uncertainty visible rather than rewriting a guess as a fact.
AI says a museum opens on Monday, but you need to plan a visit. Which evidence is most useful?
The museum’s current opening-hours page for that date
Check what you understand
In guided learning, click Start 3 questions to receive a selection from this lesson. Click the circle beside an answer, then click Check answer. Read the feedback and try again if needed. Click Next question after each correct answer. Answer all 3 correctly to continue.
Returning to guided learning keeps the questions and answers in your current attempt.
Read all 3 questions and explanations
An answer links to a genuine report. What still needs checking?
Answer: Whether the report supports the specific claim
A genuine source may be misquoted or misinterpreted. Read the relevant passage.
AI totals three costs incorrectly. What is the useful check?
Answer: Recalculate using the actual three input amounts
Formatting is not arithmetic evidence. Check both inputs and calculation.
You ask the same AI if it is sure and it says yes. What have you gained?
Answer: Another response, not independent verification
Self-confirmation is not a separate source. Check important claims against suitable evidence.
Take this to your computer
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Choose one harmless factual claim from a sample answer or article. Write down the primary source that could verify it.
The right checking effort depends on the consequences of being wrong.
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