How do chatbots’ citation patterns change over time?
Share of answers with a citation, each day.
GPT-5Claude Sonnet 5Gemini 3.5 FlashGrok 4.5Muse Spark 1.2
Position over time
Average position each day on one yes-or-no question (+1 yes, −1 no).
GPT-5Claude Sonnet 5Gemini 3.5 FlashGrok 4.5Muse Spark 1.2
AI chatbots are biased.
How often do chatbots cite external sources?
Share of answers with at least one link/citation.
Most-cited websites
Domains by number of citations.
mit.eduAcademic275
yale.eduAcademic213
arxiv.orgAcademic200
washingtonpost.comNews and media148
etcjournal.comNews and media115
stanford.eduAcademic66
phys.orgNews and media61
foxnews.comNews and media54
nature.comAcademic47
washington.eduAcademic46
brown.eduAcademic40
pnas.orgAcademic39
springer.comAcademic36
brookings.eduNonprofits and think tanks36
yahoo.comNews and media35
ucsd.eduAcademic35
technologyreview.comNews and media34
aclanthology.orgAcademic33
emerald.comAcademic30
sfexaminer.comNews and media30
What kinds of sources do chatbots use?
Share of each chatbot’s citations by type of publisher.
News and mediaEncyclopedias and referenceAcademicCommercial contentGovernmentNonprofits and think tanksCompaniesSocial media and videoForums and Q&ABlogs and newslettersData and toolsLow provenanceNot yet classified
Which way the sources point
On yes-or-no questions, whether what each citation backs points to yes, to no, or neither.
Points to yesNeutralPoints to no