Understand it in 10 seconds
An AI hallucination is a plausible-sounding answer that is false or unsupported.
In plain language
An AI hallucination is a plausible-sounding answer that is false or unsupported. This describes what the model or system does, not a promise that every product behaves identically.
An analogy
It is like guessing with confidence instead of admitting that the facts are missing.
The analogy is a shortcut, not a complete technical definition.
An everyday example
Where you will encounter it
It matters most in research, reporting, decisions and questions about current facts.
Should you care?
Yes. Fluency is not proof. Check sources, prefer primary material and verify important claims.
How it differs
RAG can ground an answer in retrieved material, but it does not eliminate hallucinations.
Related Terms
Related terms
Continue with these published explanations.
Sources & last checked
Checked against official documentation. Editorial recommendations are distinguished from vendor positioning; no runtime benchmark was performed.
Official documentation
01Last checked: September 5, 2026
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