Short answer: an AI-use disclosure is a short, factual statement saying which AI tools you used, what you used them for, and that you checked the result and take responsibility for the work. Put it where your institution asks for it (often a declaration page, an acknowledgements section, a methods section or a footnote), keep it specific, and if you quoted or relied on AI-generated content, cite it as well.
More and more courses, universities and publishers now ask for this kind of statement. The rules differ a lot between institutions, and they change. This guide doesn’t replace them. It gives you a structure that works almost anywhere, example statements you can adapt, and a list of mistakes to avoid. Before you submit, check your own course handbook, module page or journal instructions for the exact wording they expect.
Why disclosure matters
A disclosure answers one question your reader is entitled to ask: which parts of this work reflect your own thinking and writing, and where did a tool help? Getting that right protects you in two ways.
- It follows the rules you’re assessed under. Where disclosure is required, leaving it out can be treated as an academic-integrity issue even if the AI use itself was allowed.
- It puts your use on record. If anyone questions your work later, a clear statement written at the time is much stronger than an explanation given afterwards. That matters because AI detector scores are an estimate, not proof, and they misfire. We cover the evidence in do AI detectors actually work?
Professional bodies take the same line. The ICMJE recommendations for medical journals ask authors to describe how they used AI-assisted technologies, and state that chatbots should not be listed as authors because they cannot be responsible for the accuracy, integrity and originality of the work. The human author is responsible. A student essay works the same way: you sign it, so you answer for it.
What a good disclosure includes
A useful statement covers five points, in plain language:
- Which tool. Name it, and add the version or the month you used it if you know it. “AI” on its own is too vague.
- What you used it for. Brainstorming, outlining, summarising sources, drafting, paraphrasing, editing style, proofreading, translating, writing code, analysing data. Be specific.
- Which parts of the work it touched. The whole text, one chapter, the literature review, the abstract, the figures.
- What you did with the output. Did you check facts and references, rewrite the text, discard most of it?
- Responsibility. One sentence confirming that the ideas, analysis and conclusions are yours and that you take responsibility for the final text.
Some institutions also ask you to keep or attach your prompts and the AI’s replies. If yours does, save them as you go. Reconstructing a chat history a month later is painful.
Where to put it
| Type of work | Usual place | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Coursework essay | A cover sheet declaration, or a short note after the conclusion | Many courses provide a fixed form or checkbox. Use it if it exists. |
| Dissertation or thesis | Declaration page, acknowledgements, or the methodology chapter | If AI was part of your research method (for example coding interview data), describe it in the methodology, not only in a declaration. |
| Journal article | Methods or acknowledgements, plus the cover letter | Follow the journal’s author guidelines exactly. |
| Report for an employer or client | A short note at the end, or the document’s methodology section | Check your organisation’s policy on AI-assisted content. |
Example statements you can adapt
These are starting points, not legal or academic advice. Replace the bracketed parts with what you actually did, and cut anything that isn’t true for your work. A disclosure that overstates or understates your use defeats its purpose.
1. Language editing only
I used [tool name] to check spelling, grammar and punctuation in the final draft. The content, structure and wording are otherwise my own.
2. Style editing of your own draft
I wrote the first draft of this essay myself and then used [tool name] to improve the clarity and flow of [sections / the whole text]. I reviewed every change, kept or rejected each suggestion, and take responsibility for the final version.
3. Brainstorming and outlining
I used [tool name, version, month and year] to brainstorm possible angles and to suggest an outline at the start of the project. I chose the topic, structure and arguments myself, and wrote all of the text.
4. Drafting with substantial revision
I used [tool name] to produce an initial draft of [section]. I then rewrote this draft substantially, checked every factual claim and reference against the original sources, and added my own analysis. I take responsibility for the accuracy and originality of the final text.
5. AI as part of the research method (thesis)
In Chapter [n], I used [tool name, version] to [generate initial codes for the interview transcripts / translate survey responses / suggest code for the statistical analysis]. I reviewed all outputs manually, [describe how: e.g. recoded a sample, compared with a manual translation, tested the code]. The prompts I used are listed in Appendix [x].
6. No AI used
I did not use generative AI tools in preparing this work, apart from the standard spelling checker in my word processor.
The last one is worth considering even when nobody asks. Some institutions expect a statement either way, and it costs one sentence.
Disclosing vs citing: you may need both
A disclosure describes how you worked. A citation credits a specific piece of content you quote or rely on. If you quote text a chatbot wrote, or use an idea it generated as part of your argument, most style guides expect a citation too.
- APA: the APA Style blog treats a chatbot as software, with the company that makes it as the author, and suggests describing how you used it in your text, for example in the method section of a research paper.
- MLA: the MLA Style Center recommends citing generative AI whenever you quote, paraphrase or use content it created, not listing the tool as an author, and acknowledging functional uses such as editing or translating in a note or in the text.
- Other styles (Harvard, Chicago, Vancouver): check the version your department uses. Many departments publish their own AI-citation examples.
One more point from the MLA guidance worth repeating: if a chatbot gave you sources, find and read them yourself. Generated references can look real and not exist. Our checklist for checking that an AI rewrite kept your facts covers references too.
Common mistakes
- Being vague. “AI tools were used” tells the reader nothing. Say which tool and for what.
- Leaving out “small” tools. Paraphrasers, humanizers and AI-powered proofreaders are AI tools. If your rules ask about AI assistance in general, they usually count.
- Disclosing instead of following the rules. A statement doesn’t make prohibited use acceptable. If your assignment bans AI for drafting, disclosing that you drafted with AI is honest, but it’s still a breach.
- Copying someone else’s statement word for word. Your disclosure should describe your process. Template wording is fine as a start; the details must be yours.
- Writing it at the last minute. Keep a quick log while you work: date, tool, what you asked, what you kept. The statement then takes two minutes.
The disclosure helper in humai
If you use humai, each tool has a “Need to disclose AI use?” panel under the result. It gives you a ready-to-copy sentence that matches the tool you used: the AI humanizer, the paraphrasing tool or the proofreader. For example, the proofreader’s sentence reads: “I used the AI proofreading tool humai (gethumai.com) to correct spelling, grammar and punctuation. The content and wording are otherwise my own.” Treat it like the examples above: a starting point you edit so it says what you actually did, then check against your institution’s wording.
humai also tells you, every time, that you’re using an AI system and that the output should be reviewed. Its AI detector shows an estimated AI-style score, which is not a verdict on authorship. Neither feature changes the rules you work under. If your course allows AI-assisted editing with disclosure, use the tools to polish what you wrote, then say so.