EU transparency rules under AI Act take effect, requiring disclosure of AI interactions and deepfakes

The European Union’s transparency obligations under the AI Act took effect on August 2, 2026, requiring companies to disclose when users interact with AI models and when content is AI-generated or altered.

The rules distinguish between providers—companies that develop and market AI systems—and deployers, which are platforms and services using those systems. Some companies, such as Meta and SpaceXAI, fall into both categories.

Providers must design AI systems to explicitly notify users when they are interacting with AI, unless the AI interaction is obvious. They must also include machine-readable marks on synthetic audio, image, video, and text to indicate artificial generation or manipulation.

Deployers are required to label AI-generated or manipulated image, audio, and video deepfake content that is designed to appear real, ensuring users can identify inauthentic media.

The European Commission has developed optional AI disclosure labels that platforms can adopt to standardize labeling across online platforms, mirroring labels already introduced by TikTok, Instagram, and Facebook.

The Commission emphasizes that while the labeling icons are optional, the transparency requirements themselves are mandatory. Companies that fail to comply face fines of up to €15 million or 3% of their global annual turnover.

New AI systems launched after August 2, 2026, must comply immediately, while pre-existing models and services have a grace period until December 2, 2026, to meet the new requirements.