Over 40 per cent of UK universities are dealing with investigations around students using ChatGPT to cheat on their assignments, new research has revealed.

University news website the Tab lodged freedom information of requests from 114 universities which showed that 48 institutions had investigated at least one student since December 2022.

Data showed that almost 400 students have faced investigations for using AI chatbots in university-assessed pieces of work and at least 146 have been found guilty to date while dozens of investigations remain ongoing.

The University of Kent was found to have the highest AI-assisted cheating levels, with 47 students having been investigated and 22 to date having been found guilty of using ChatGPT or similar AI chatbots.

Birkbeck, University of London, came in second place with 41 investigations having taken place. However, a spokesperson for the university told the Tab “the number who have admitted the offence is less than five” and that most of the investigations are still open due to the relative newness of chatbot technology.

Leeds Beckett university placed in third, with 10 students found guilty and 35 investigations ongoing. A spokesperson for the university told the Tab it was doing its best to deal with the “rapidly developing situation regarding generative AI tools”.

The UK’s 24 Russell Group universities recently backed a set of AI principles which include a commitment to adapt teaching and assessment methods to incorporate the ethical use of generative AI while supporting equal access.

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