How do I fact-check AI answers before using them

Start with the claims that could change what you do. If an AI answer will influence a booking or a work decision, check the details that determine whether that action is appropriate.

You can keep a useful draft while correcting it. The job is to find out which statements the evidence supports and which still need an answer.

1. Pull out the important claims

Suppose an assistant summarises a supplier proposal. It says the price is £1,800 and delivery is guaranteed on Friday.

Those are separate claims. Check each against the relevant part of the proposal. Do not accept them because the rest of the paragraph sounds professional.

Look especially at facts that affect a commitment. A minor wording preference needs less attention than the amount you are about to pay.

If the answer mixes facts with a recommendation, separate them. A documented price is evidence. “You should sign immediately” is a conclusion that needs its own reasoning.

2. Open the source

Follow the reference to the actual document or page. Check that it is the intended source, then find the passage relevant to the claim.

A real source can be misrepresented. Historical research on generated citations also found errors involving references to genuine works. Finding a recognisable title is therefore only the beginning.

For a date-sensitive fact, check the relevant date. A transport operator’s notice for your travel day can override a general description of its usual timetable. A current-looking page can still contain older data.

If you cannot access the source, mark it as uninspected. That does not prove the claim false, but it is not verified support either.

3. Preserve the conditions

Return to the supplier proposal. It says delivery could happen Friday if approval arrives Wednesday. The assistant’s guaranteed Friday wording has changed the commitment.

Correct the summary so the condition remains visible. If approval is late, someone relying on the original AI answer could make the wrong plan.

Apply the same check to research claims. A study showing less time spent on a first draft does not necessarily establish better final quality. Read what was measured before repeating a broader claim.

4. Recalculate important figures

Check the inputs before checking the arithmetic. In this fictional proposal, the base workshop costs £1,200. Recording is an optional £300, and tax is twenty percent on accepted services. You did not accept recording.

The base package with the stated tax is £1,440. The assistant’s £1,800 includes an option you did not choose. A calculator can reproduce £1,800 perfectly and still answer the wrong question.

For a comparison, make sure the figures cover the same period and requirements. A monthly price per person cannot be compared directly with an annual price for a whole team.

The Office for Statistics Regulation explains why definitions and context belong alongside figures. Keep the qualification near the number, where a reader will see it.

Keep checked context separate with AI Passport

AI Passport holds selected personal context that connected assistants can use with your permission. For a project, that can help preserve an important distinction you would otherwise keep explaining.

For example, save that the workshop budget remains a draft and no spending approval has been given. Review the proposed memory, including its date and scope. A second permitted assistant can then use that context when drafting an update.

Keep the actual proposal as the source for its precise terms. A short memory can be outdated or incomplete, so use the current document when checking a consequential figure.

Ask the assistant to distinguish retrieved Passport context from its interpretation. Approving the memory does not automatically give every app access. The benefit is a clearer shared project brief, not automatic verification of everything an assistant says.

5. Decide what is ready to use

Correct statements contradicted by evidence. Keep unresolved questions visible. If a missing fact determines whether to proceed, obtain that fact before committing.

Asking another AI can help you find questions you missed. It is not necessarily independent confirmation because both answers may rely on the same source.

Finish with a version whose important claims you can explain. If the date or offer changes later, recheck the part of the decision that depends on it.