China rolls out mandatory labels for AI-generated content

Starting today, September 1, China requires text, images, audio and video generated or modified using artificial intelligence to be identified. The new rules combine labels visible to people with technical identifiers embedded in files, creating a two-layer system designed to make the anonymous spread of synthetic content more difficult.

Major platforms such as WeChat, Douyin — the Chinese version of TikTok — and Weibo have rolled out changes to comply with the rules, South China Morning Post reports. The measure applies both to companies offering AI tools and to the services distributing their output, as well as to the users who publish it.

Two labels for the same piece of content

The measures were published in March by the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC), together with the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the Ministry of Public Security and the National Radio and Television Administration. They take effect alongside a national technical standard spelling out how the markers must be applied.

The system distinguishes between two types of identification:

• The explicit label must be perceptible to the user. It could be a notice alongside a text, a graphic marker over an image, or a message added to a video or audio file.
• The implicit label is added to the file’s metadata — the technical information that accompanies it even though it is not normally visible. It may include details about its origin, the provider used and the type of synthetic content.

The combination is intended to address a common weakness of visible watermarks: they can be cropped, erased or covered up. Metadata allows for automated verification, although it is not foolproof either, as it can be lost when a file is copied, compressed or transformed.

The rules prohibit removing, tampering with or falsifying these identifiers. They also bar companies from deliberately providing tools designed to strip them.

Platforms must verify and complete the labelling

Responsibility does not end with the AI generator. When a platform finds the relevant identification in a file’s metadata, it must display a notice visible to the public. If it detects signs that content is synthetic despite the absence of a technical marker, it may also label it as suspicious or likely AI-generated.

Users, for their part, must disclose their use of artificial intelligence when publishing content. WeChat has said its creators will have to voluntarily flag such content; for posts that have not been identified, the platform will display warnings so readers can “exercise their own judgment” about their authenticity.

This division of responsibilities is one of the most significant aspects of China’s model. It does not rely solely on creators to act properly: it builds controls into AI providers, social networks and app distribution channels. App stores may also require documentation demonstrating that generative services comply with the rules.

For companies, this means changes throughout the technical chain. It is not enough to place a sentence beneath an image: identifiers must be preserved during the file’s generation, export, upload and redistribution.

A response to AI-generated fraud and disinformation

Beijing presents the rules as a tool against disinformation, scams, impersonation and intellectual property violations. Chinese regulators believe that deepfakes — manipulated recordings designed to imitate a person’s face or voice — can threaten both individual and national security.

Labelling can provide context, but it does not determine whether a post is true. AI-generated content can be accurate, while an authentic photograph can be used to deceive. Its effectiveness will also depend on platforms recognising markers from other services and preventing them from disappearing during editing or downloading.

The regulation also expands the Chinese digital ecosystem’s capacity for oversight. The same mechanisms that make it possible to trace the origin of a fraudulent video also make it easier to attribute and control the circulation of content. In China, transparency about AI use is thus folded into a broader policy of internet surveillance and moderation, including the CAC’s annual Qinglang campaign.

China moves ahead of Europe’s timetable

The European Union will also require certain AI-generated or manipulated content to be identifiable in a machine-readable format. Article 50 of the AI Act also includes disclosure obligations for deepfakes and certain texts of public interest, but those provisions will not generally apply until August 2026.

China is moving nearly a year ahead on implementation and is adopting an operational approach from today that covers generators, platforms and users. That does not mean the two systems are equivalent: the European framework distinguishes obligations according to who creates or publishes the content and includes exceptions, while China’s system is integrated into a far more centralised internet-control regime.

The decisive test begins now. Regulators will have to show that markers survive as files move between applications and that platforms apply consistent standards to suspicious content. For WeChat, Douyin, Weibo and AI providers, labelling is no longer a voluntary feature; it is now part of the mandatory infrastructure for publishing content.