EU develops icons to label AI-generated content

The EU has developed a set of icons that creators, publishers and other deployers of generative AI systems may use to label their AI-generated content.

What content needs to be labelled as AI-generated or manipulated?

The icons are intended to help natural persons exposed to such content to recognise, in a clear and distinguishable manner, that the content has been artificially generated or manipulated. This obligation supports public trust, reduces the risk of misinformation and the informed viewing and reading by natural persons of all sorts of content.

Not all AI-generated or manipulated content needs to be labelled. The disclosure requirement under the AI Act covers only AI-generated or manipulated content. The icons support compliance with Article 50(4) of the AI Act, which requires deployers of AI systems to disclose:

• Deepfakes - AI-generated or manipulated image, audio, or video content that resembles existing persons, objects, places, entities or events and would falsely appear to a person to be authentic or truthful.
• AI-generated or manipulated text published to inform the public on matters of public interest, which did not undergo human review or editorial control and where editorial responsibility was not assumed by any legal or natural person.

Evidently artistic, creative, satirical, fictional and analogous works

If deepfake content forms part of an evidently artistic, creative, satirical, fictional or analogous work or programme, the transparency obligations are limited to disclosure in an appropriate manner that does not hamper the display or enjoyment of the work.

Authorised by law

The disclosure obligation does not apply where the use of deepfakes or published text on matters of public interest is authorised by law to detect, prevent, investigate or prosecute criminal offences.

Human review or editorial control for text

The disclosure obligation does not apply where the AI-generated text has undergone a process of human review or editorial control and where a natural or legal person holds editorial responsibility for the publication of the content.