Would an AI Actually Cite This? Three Paragraphs, One Test
Objective: Given three candidate paragraphs written for the same factual claim, apply the lesson's citation-trigger scoring (quotations, sourced statistics, primary citations, defined terms, structure) to correctly separate the version an AI assistant is likely to cite from versions that read fine to a human but carry zero citation signal.
You're reviewing draft paragraphs for Ola Electric's blog before publish, specifically the EV range and battery-life claims that show up whenever someone asks ChatGPT or Perplexity about electric scooter range in India.
Read all three specimens. For each, decide if it would score well on the lesson's five citation triggers, and name exactly which triggers are present or missing.
Before you start
What you'll need
Free path (everything below is enough to finish)
Free tier is sufficient to spot-check citation-worthy phrasing
Free, no setup
The process
Specimens to review
Would an AI assistant cite this paragraph when answering a range question? Name every defect you find.
The Ola S1 Pro electric scooter offers an impressive range that easily handles your daily commute. With fast charging and a spacious boot, it's designed for the modern Indian rider who wants performance and convenience in one package. Riders love how far it can go on a single charge.
Specimen: synthetic, realistic
Would an AI assistant cite this paragraph when answering a range question? Name every defect you find, or state clearly that there are none.
The Ola S1 Pro delivers a certified range of 195 km on a single charge under IDC (Indian Driving Cycle) test conditions, according to Ola Electric's official spec sheet published in 2024. A 0-80% fast charge takes 91 minutes on Ola's Hypercharger network. For context, the Bureau of Energy Efficiency's 2023 report on electric two-wheelers found the average certified range across BEE-rated scooters sold in India was 111 km, making the S1 Pro's certified figure roughly 76% above category average.
Specimen: synthetic, realistic
Would an AI assistant cite this paragraph when answering a range question? Name every defect you find.
Electric scooters in the Ola lineup can travel over 190 km on a single charge, more than double what most petrol scooters can do on a full tank in city traffic. Charging is fast too, getting most of the way full in under 100 minutes. This makes the S1 Pro one of the longest-range electric scooters available in India today.
Specimen: synthetic, realistic
Final deliverable
A scored checklist for all three paragraphs (which of the 5 citation triggers each one hits) and a rewritten version of the two flawed paragraphs.
See a reference example
Citation-trigger scorecard, Awfis Space Solutions blog draft Draft: 'Awfis coworking desks are comfortable and affordable for any team.' Quotations: no | Sourced stats: no | Primary citation: no | Defined terms: no | Structured steps: no Score: 0/5 triggers present, high risk of zero AI citations Rewrite: 'Awfis lists hot-desk pricing starting at Rs 6,999/seat/month across its 200+ centres (Awfis 2024 pricing page), compared to a 2024 industry average of Rs 8,200/seat/month for tier-1-city coworking, per Awfis's IPO prospectus filed with SEBI.' Quotations: no | Sourced stats: yes | Primary citation: yes | Defined terms: no | Structured steps: no Score: 2/5 triggers present, meaningfully higher citation odds
Success criteria
You're done when you can:
- Correctly identifies item 2 as the clean specimen with zero defects
- Names the specific missing trigger (sourced statistic or named attribution) in items 1 and 3, not just 'needs more detail'
- Does not flag brand self-citation or product naming as defects