How to check AI output before you send it

AI answers read confidently whether they are right or not. The fix is not to distrust everything. It is to decide how hard to check before you read the answer.

Choose the level before you read

If you decide how much to check after you have read a smooth, plausible paragraph, you will check less than the task deserves. Decide first, based on what happens if it is wrong.

The Verification Ladder in UNPUZZLE AI has four levels, from a low-stakes idea you can use as it is to a high-impact decision that needs a source for every claim. Where a task sits depends on the cost of an error, not on how sure the answer sounds.

A quick check before you paste

Whatever the level, a short routine catches most problems:

• Numbers: does every figure and date appear in your source material?
• Names and quotes: are the people, companies and quotations real and spelled correctly?
• Claims: would you be comfortable if the reader asked for the source of each one?
• Tone: does it sound like you, or like a generic assistant?
• Gaps: what did you ask for that is missing from the answer?

Keep one decision for yourself

Every AI task has a point where someone has to decide: send or not, include or cut, trust or verify. Name that point in advance and keep it. The goal is not to avoid AI. It is to make sure the final call is still yours.