A further significant part of the EU Artificial Intelligence Act (AI Act) has entered into application. Since 2 August 2026, new transparency obligations apply across the European Union with the objective of ensuring that individuals are adequately informed when they interact with certain AI systems or are exposed to AI-generated or manipulated content.

The new requirements reflect one of the central regulatory principles underlying the AI Act: users should be able to recognise when artificial intelligence is involved. Depending on the type of AI system and content concerned, the regulatory framework therefore requires disclosure of AI interaction and identification of certain artificially generated or manipulated content. The rules are particularly relevant in the context of generative AI, including synthetic audio, image, video and text content.

For businesses, the implications extend beyond adding a simple disclaimer to AI-generated material. Organisations using or deploying AI systems need to assess which transparency obligations apply to their specific use cases, who bears responsibility for the relevant disclosure, and how compliance can be operationalised and documented. This may require adjustments to internal AI governance frameworks, content-approval processes and technical controls.

The rules also illustrate the gradual transition of the AI Act from a legislative framework to an operational regulatory regime. They are of particular relevance to companies using generative AI in areas such as communications, marketing, customer interaction or content production, as such activities may fall within the scope of the applicable transparency requirements. The precise implications will depend on the circumstances of the individual use case and the respective obligations under the AI Act.

A recently published article examines the new transparency requirements and their practical significance for businesses as the implementation of the AI Act continues.