When an AI confidently states something that is factually incorrect or invented. AI models generate plausible-sounding text — sometimes that text is wrong. Common failure points: fabricated citations, incorrect numbers, invented product features. Always verify specific factual claims in high-stakes contexts.
Hallucination
Lessons that cover this
- AI for SalesResearch, follow-up, and proposals — the three places it earns its keep, and the one place it will cost you a deal.
- Knowing When to Trust the OutputA checking routine proportional to the stakes, so verification does not eat the time you saved.
- Why AI Gets Things WrongHallucination is not a glitch to be patched. It is the same process that makes AI useful, running without a fact-check.
- AI for FinanceExcellent at the narrative around the numbers. Not to be trusted with the numbers.
- What AI Is Good At, and What It Is NotA sorting rule you can apply to any task in about ten seconds.
- AI for Hiring and HRThe function with the most useful tasks and the hardest legal line.
Related terms
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