BRUSSELS โ Deepfakes and other AI-generated content must be labelled from Aug 2, as the European Unionโs sweeping artificial intelligence transparency rules kick in.
The goal? To make sure Europeans immediately know whether the online content they see is real or fake.
The EUโs comprehensive AI law enters into force in stages.
From Aug 2, companies must ensure their AI systems like chatbots make it clear to users they are AI, or when an image or text has been created using AI, there must be a label saying so.
This can be done by integrating watermarks and other markers to allow the easy detection of AI-generated content. Firms face large fines if they do not comply.
โGenerative AI enables disinformation to be created at unprecedented scale, tailored to specific audiences, and disseminated with remarkable speed,โ an EU official said.
Since AI is โmaking it increasingly difficult for all of us to distinguish what is real from what is syntheticโ, the official said, the EUโs rules seek to โpreserve citizensโ ability to trust what they see, hear, and readโ.
Of particular concern for the EU are deepfakes โ text, images, videos and sounds that appear to be real but are generated or manipulated by AI.
The rules affect content made for professional reasons, and the EU insists individuals using AI in a purely personal capacity will not be affected.
Text that aims to inform the public on general interest issues will also have to be labelled if they are created using AI without human editorial oversight.
Existing AI systems have until Dec 2 to adapt to the new rules, and there are exemptions for โartistic, creative, satirical, fictionalโ work.
Big Tech moves
The EU has come under fire for placing more demands on businesses, and rules that will ultimately force all content to be labelled given the rapidly growing widespread use of AI across Europe.
โWe have heard that it is going to be very, very difficult to implement. But I think we often hear this with compliance requirements. And yet, the world turns and we figure these things out,โ Ashley Casovan of International Association of Privacy Professionals told AFP.
The worldโs tech giants have already begun slapping their own labels in anticipation of the rules.
For example, TikTok has required content creators to label AI-generated images, audio and video for several years, and says over three billion content items already have labels thanks to tools and detection technology.
Likewise, Meta has deployed an โAI Infoโ label on Instagram and Facebook for posts using the technology.
Google has signed the EU code of conduct on AI transparency, and says it is working with others like Nvidia, OpenAI and Apple on digital tagging tools.
But Googleโs Karen Massin warns of โregulatory complexityโ that could prove counterproductive, and โrisks confusing the people these rules are meant to helpโ.
โIf online content is flooded with overlapping AI labels and legal disclosures, it becomes harder for people to get the clear context they need,โ Massin added. AFP
