When a Mate gets it wrong

Check facts, links, calculations and tables when a Mate gives a confident but incorrect answer.

Last updated About 1 hour ago

A Mate can produce a clear and confident answer that contains a mistake. Treat important output as a draft to check, especially when it contains facts, links, calculations or a table built from your data.

A Mate can fill a gap with a plausible detail instead of saying that it does not know. It can also produce a link that looks real but does not open or does not support the claim beside it.

For facts that matter:

  1. Ask the Mate to separate confirmed facts from assumptions.
  2. Ask for the source of each important claim.
  3. Open every important link and check the relevant passage yourself.
  4. Compare names, dates and quotations with the original source.

For current public information, use a Mate with a web search tool and ask it to include source links. Search gives the Mate newer evidence, but you must still check that the cited page supports the answer.

Calculations and tables

Check the inputs before you check the result. A correct calculation based on a missing row, the wrong period or mixed units is still the wrong answer.

For a calculation, ask the Mate to show the formula, the input values and the unit of the result. Recalculate a sample independently. For substantial spreadsheet work, use a Mate with the Code Interpreter tool so the computation runs as code, then inspect the generated file and a few source rows.

For a table, check:

  • the row and column definitions,
  • filters and date ranges,
  • totals against the source,
  • blank values and duplicates,
  • units, currencies and rounding.

If the answer uses an interactive table, download the displayed rows as CSV when you need to audit or keep them.

Correct the request, not only the answer

When the result is wrong, point to the exact problem. Give the correct source or value, then ask the Mate to redo only the affected work. If the conversation contains several conflicting corrections, state the final rule in one message or start a fresh conversation with a checked handoff.

Do not ask the Mate to confirm its own answer by repeating the same question. Give it another source, a concrete test or an independent calculation.

Good to know

  • A polished tone is not evidence that an answer is correct.
  • A source link proves nothing until you open it and check the claim.
  • Use a qualified person for legal, medical, financial or safety decisions.
  • Do not paste credentials or private content into a request for verification.