MemCast
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Footnotes as real-time validation in software

Just as academic papers use footnotes to cite sources, modern AI interfaces integrate inline references that link directly to the data origin. This transforms passive citations into active verification tools—users can click to see the source page, ensuring transparency and accountability for AI-generated content in real-time workflows.

HostY Combinator00:17:32

Supporting quotes

when you Googled kind of in the past um you just had a list of websites a list of basically the references or the links and they were your destination but now that you ask kind of a chat chat box um and you get the answer back you kind of want to have the links um the references kind of like inlined and I believe it was maybe perplexity kind of to to do that pattern first where you had like these little round uh numbered dots right in line with the answer Host
this is a really nice pattern that um is sort of like used here um and it could even be used in other context or even be inlined here um I guess in a spreadsheet it works kind of to pull it out into in into its own popover um when you are kind of more uh looking for space and to condense it then sort like the pattern of having the footnotes almost directly in the answer is a really really successful pattern Rafael

From this concept

Trust & Transparency in AI Outputs

Inline source citations and footnotes validate AI-generated data, transforming passive references into active verification tools. Per-cell AI agents in spreadsheets dynamically fetch specific data points, while academic-style footnotes ensure accountability for real-time information.

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