Google will require advertisers to specificy if political ads contain aspects altered or generated by artificial intelligence come November.
Advertisers must label any content that does utilize AI in a “clear and conspicuous” way that users will notice, Google’s policy states. The change applies to images, videos, and audio content.
“All verified election advertisers in regions where verification is required must prominently disclose when their ads contain synthetic content that inauthentically depicts real or realistic-looking people or events,” Google’s website states.
The tech giant won’t apply the rules to images that advertisers have resized, cropped, or corrected for colour and brightening.
The company announced the change ahead of the 2024 presidential election in the U.S. and appears to be the first tech company to specify AI requirements for political ads.
The rule arguably would’ve been helpful locally as well, especially in Toronto’s mayoral race. One of the candidates, Anthony Furey, appeared to use AI-generated images as part of his platform.
This included an image of people sitting outside a building, with one of the subjects appearing to fade away. An image of a three-armed woman on Furey’s platform discussing job creation was also part of the platform.
Image credit: Shutterstock
Source: Google
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