YouTube to auto-label photorealistic AI videos

YouTube will now automatically detect and label videos containing significant photorealistic AI-generated content, moving away from a system that relied primarily on creators to voluntarily disclose such use. The platform announced the policy shift on Wednesday, stating it will apply labels using new internal detection signals when creators have not provided disclosure themselves.

The automatic labeling system will begin rolling out this month. YouTube stated that while creators are still required to manually disclose the use of realistic AI, its systems will now intervene when that disclosure is absent. If a creator does not specify whether AI was used, but YouTube's systems detect significant photorealistic AI use, a label will be automatically applied. Creators who believe their content has been incorrectly flagged can update the disclosure status in YouTube Studio. However, labels will be permanent and unremovable for content created using YouTube's own AI tools, such as Veo or Dream Screen, and for content containing C2PA metadata indicating it was fully AI-generated.

Concurrently, YouTube is making these AI content labels more prominent for viewers. For long-form videos,...