Definition
Laws that force businesses to tell people when they are dealing with AI, label AI-made content, and disclose how their AI was trained.
At a glance
- Disclose the bot: tell customers a chatbot or voice assistant is AI, not a human, unless obvious[5].
- Label AI content: mark AI-generated or altered images, audio, video, and deepfakes as artificial, often machine-readable[1].
- Reveal the inputs: California’s AB 2013 makes public generative-AI developers publish a training-data summary[3].
- 2026 deadlines are live and apply to anyone serving those markets, wherever you are based.
What you must disclose
Three buckets: tell customers when they’re talking to AI[5], mark anything your AI generates or alters[1], and (for generative-AI makers) publish training-data details[3]. The EU AI Act’s Article 50 covers the first two; California’s AB 2013 drives the third.
Who and by when
Rules split between “providers” who build the AI and “deployers” who use it on customers; a small shop with an off-the-shelf chatbot is usually a deployer. Deadlines: California AB 2013 (Jan 1, 2026)[3], Colorado AI Act (Feb 1)[4], EU Article 50 (Aug 2)[2].
Why it matters
Penalties are real and active: EU fines reach EUR 35M or 7% of global turnover[2], US states treat violations as deceptive trade practices, and the FTC is already suing firms over hidden AI claims[6]. The fix is cheap: add a clear “you’re chatting with AI” notice and label AI-made media.
Bottom line
Never let anyone mistake your AI for a human or your synthetic content for real; adding disclosures now beats a fine later.