YouTube is rolling out automatic detection and labeling of AI-generated videos, expanding its existing disclosure system as synthetic media becomes more common on the platform. The company will start using internal signals from May 2026 to identify content with “significant photorealistic AI” and apply labels when creators fail to self-report their use of generative tools.
The move builds on rules introduced in 2024 that required uploaders to disclose when their videos included realistic AI-generated or heavily altered material. Under the new approach, YouTube’s internal systems will supplement those declarations and place labels on videos where it detects substantial AI involvement, while giving creators the option to update disclosure status in YouTube Studio if they believe a video has been incorrectly flagged.
Label placement is also being overhauled to make AI disclosures more visible across the platform. For long-form videos, the AI label will move from the expanded description to a position directly beneath the video player, above the description field, so viewers can see the context without additional clicks. On YouTube Shorts, the disclosure will appear as an overlay on the video itself, rather than being buried in accompanying text.
YouTube is standardizing this more prominent badge as the single format for all photorealistic and “meaningfully AI altered or generated” content on the service. By contrast, content that is clearly unrealistic, animated, or only lightly edited with AI will continue to carry disclosures in the expanded description rather than a front-and-center label.
In some cases, AI labels will be locked in and cannot be removed by creators. Disclosures will be permanent for videos created with YouTube’s own AI tools, including Veo and Dream Screen, as well as content that carries C2PA metadata indicating it was fully generated by AI. YouTube is a steering member of the Coalition for Content Provenance and Authenticity, the group behind the C2PA standard for embedding provenance signals into digital media.
YouTube says the labels are informational and will not, by themselves, affect recommendations or ad eligibility for videos. The changes come as regulators tighten transparency requirements for synthetic media, including under the EU AI Act, whose rules on marking AI-generated and manipulated content are due to take effect in August 2026.
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