diff --git a/src/config/index.ts b/src/config/index.ts
index 9e173ad..e405919 100644
--- a/src/config/index.ts
+++ b/src/config/index.ts
@@ -29,6 +29,9 @@ const envSchema = z.object({
   // Rate limiting
   RATE_LIMIT_MAX: z.coerce.number().default(100),
   RATE_LIMIT_WINDOW_MS: z.coerce.number().default(60_000),
+
+  // AI service (chainlearn-ai) used for quiz generation
+  AI_SERVICE_URL: z.string().url().default("http://localhost:8000"),
 });
 
 export type Env = z.infer<typeof envSchema>;
diff --git a/src/modules/quizzes/ai-client.ts b/src/modules/quizzes/ai-client.ts
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..58f0acb
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/modules/quizzes/ai-client.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,50 @@
+import { config } from "../../config/index.js";
+import { logger } from "../../utils/logger.js";
+
+interface AiQuizQuestion {
+  prompt: string;
+  options: string[];
+  correct_index: number;
+}
+
+interface AiQuizResponse {
+  quiz_id: string;
+  questions: AiQuizQuestion[];
+}
+
+export type AiDifficulty = "beginner" | "intermediate" | "advanced";
+
+export interface GenerateQuizFromAIParams {
+  userId: string;
+  courseId: string;
+  moduleId: string;
+  difficulty: AiDifficulty;
+  numQuestions: number;
+}
+
+export async function generateQuizFromAI(
+  params: GenerateQuizFromAIParams
+): Promise<AiQuizQuestion[]> {
+  const response = await fetch(`${config.AI_SERVICE_URL}/generate-quiz`, {
+    method: "POST",
+    headers: { "Content-Type": "application/json" },
+    body: JSON.stringify({
+      user_id: params.userId,
+      course_id: params.courseId,
+      module_id: params.moduleId,
+      difficulty: params.difficulty,
+      num_questions: params.numQuestions,
+    }),
+  });
+
+  if (!response.ok) {
+    logger.error(
+      { status: response.status },
+      "AI service quiz generation failed"
+    );
+    throw new Error(`AI service returned ${response.status}`);
+  }
+
+  const data = (await response.json()) as AiQuizResponse;
+  return data.questions;
+}
diff --git a/src/modules/quizzes/quiz.service.ts b/src/modules/quizzes/quiz.service.ts
index 9396e82..c59b586 100644
--- a/src/modules/quizzes/quiz.service.ts
+++ b/src/modules/quizzes/quiz.service.ts
@@ -5,6 +5,7 @@ import { NotFoundError, ForbiddenError, ConflictError } from "../../utils/errors
 import { withLock } from "../../utils/lock.js";
 import { createQuizProof } from "../../stellar/signatures.js";
 import { logger } from "../../utils/logger.js";
+import { generateQuizFromAI } from "./ai-client.js";
 import type {
   GenerateQuizBody,
   SubmitQuizBody,
@@ -17,9 +18,10 @@ const PASSING_PERCENTAGE = 70;
 
 export class QuizService {
   /**
-   * Generate a quiz for a given course/module.
-   * In a real system this would call an AI service; here we return
-   * a pre-generated quiz or fetch from the database.
+   * Generate a quiz for a given course/module. Calls the chainlearn-ai
+   * service for fresh questions and falls back to a fixed placeholder set
+   * if the service is unreachable. Existing quizzes for the same user +
+   * module are returned as-is so a refresh doesn't regenerate.
    */
   async generateQuiz(
     userId: string,
@@ -64,11 +66,34 @@ export class QuizService {
       };
     }
 
-    // Generate new quiz (placeholder — would call AI service)
-    const generatedQuestions = this.createPlaceholderQuestions(
-      data.courseId,
-      data.moduleId
-    );
+    // Generate new quiz via the chainlearn-ai service. Fall back to the
+    // hardcoded placeholder set if the AI service is unreachable so the
+    // dashboard never breaks on a transient outage.
+    let generatedQuestions;
+    try {
+      const aiQuestions = await generateQuizFromAI({
+        userId,
+        courseId: data.courseId,
+        moduleId: data.moduleId,
+        difficulty: data.difficulty ?? "beginner",
+        numQuestions: data.numQuestions ?? 5,
+      });
+      generatedQuestions = aiQuestions.map((q, i) => ({
+        id: `q${i + 1}`,
+        text: q.prompt,
+        options: q.options,
+        correctIndex: q.correct_index,
+      }));
+    } catch (err) {
+      logger.warn(
+        { err },
+        "AI service unavailable, falling back to placeholder questions"
+      );
+      generatedQuestions = this.createPlaceholderQuestions(
+        data.courseId,
+        data.moduleId
+      );
+    }
 
     const [quiz] = await db
       .insert(quizzes)
diff --git a/src/modules/quizzes/quiz.types.ts b/src/modules/quizzes/quiz.types.ts
index c1b44b8..41157a8 100644
--- a/src/modules/quizzes/quiz.types.ts
+++ b/src/modules/quizzes/quiz.types.ts
@@ -5,6 +5,8 @@ import { z } from "zod";
 export const generateQuizSchema = z.object({
   courseId: z.string().uuid("Invalid course ID"),
   moduleId: z.string().min(1, "Module ID is required"),
+  difficulty: z.enum(["beginner", "intermediate", "advanced"]).optional(),
+  numQuestions: z.coerce.number().int().min(1).max(20).optional(),
 });
 
 export const submitQuizSchema = z.object({