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Sources and citations

Read the citations behind an OpenFeather answer, check dates and independence, and know when to distrust a confident response.

Last verified 13 October 2026 · OpenbirdAI documentation

Citations are the difference between a useful answer and a guess. Every grounded OpenFeather answer lists the sources it used, and separating those sources from OpenFeather's interpretation is the most important skill in using the product.

What the source list tells you

That retrieval actually ran, and against which service.
Which specific records, documents or pages supported the claims.
The date of each source, so you can judge freshness.
Whether the sources are independent of each other or several copies of one origin.

If the source list is empty for a question that should have used private data, the request never reached the provider. Treat the answer as unsupported.

Evidence versus interpretation

Separating these two is a habit worth building:

Evidence — the retrieved fact, traceable to a source you can open.
Interpretation — OpenFeather's explanation, comparison, summary or recommendation built on that evidence.
Confirmation — an action the product actually completed and reported.

An interpretation is never a confirmation. If a draft, message or scheduled item was not explicitly reported as completed, assume it was not.

Contradictions and single sources

When sources materially disagree, OpenFeather surfaces the conflict rather than silently picking one. A conclusion that rests on a single source, or on several pages that all copy the same origin, is weaker than the wording suggests.

A quick verification routine

Open at least one cited source for any claim you intend to act on.
Check the source date against the period you asked about.
Confirm the workspace and account that produced the answer is the right one.
If the answer and the source disagree, trust the source and report the documentation gap.

What a citation does not tell you

That the source is current — check the date yourself.
That the source is authoritative — a blog post quoting a number is weaker than the record it quotes.
That the claim is fully supported — read the cited passage, not just its existence.

Independent sources matter. Five pages that all copy one press release are one source wearing five hats.

Common questions

Why does an answer have no sources?

The question was answered from general capability or conversation context, or the retrieval was blocked by permissions. Both are valid outcomes, but neither supports a private-data claim.

Are citations guaranteed to be complete?

They reflect the sources the run used. If a claim has no citation, do not treat that claim as verified.