The End of Quiet AI: Adland Responds to Europe’s Article 50 Calling for More AI Transparency

There are examples of AI use – such as the deepfake of the late Pope Francis in a huge white puffer jacket – which have had the internet in hysterics. But the flipside is far darker: think of 2022’s deepfake video showing Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky telling national soldiers to surrender their weapons and give up the fight against Russia.

Meanwhile, in 2024, pop singer Taylor Swift was targeted digitally when a set of explicit AI-generated images were spread online without her consent.

It’s these sorts of manipulations that have led to new AI laws being put into place in the EU.

Firms are now required to ensure that people know they are viewing an AI-manipulated image or AI-generated text. They will have to notify consumers by labelling if they are interacting with AI chatbots or emotion-recognition technology.

While many advertisers already frequently use AI as part of their creative process, the question remains over whether being more transparent about AI use will put off consumers, and therefore make AI use less appealing for marketers.

According to the European Association of Communications Agencies (EACA) senior public affairs advisor Dr Mónika Magyar, the new rules are likely to lead to clients becoming more “informed and pragmatic”.

“The conversation has shifted from “should we use AI?” to “how do we use AI responsibly?”, she says. “Clear rules can actually increase confidence because they reduce uncertainty. At the same time, clients are asking more detailed questions about governance, transparency, intellectual property, and compliance, so agencies need to be able to demonstrate robust internal processes.”

Similarly, chief creative officer at AKQA Brussels, Peter Ampe, argues that the move will help to “create transparency” but he adds that “AI slop will not become more or less effective with or without a label. I believe our clients have their own moral compass on whether to use AI or not in execution, but the regulations will make it easier to make that choice”.

CEO of the Slovenian Advertising Chamber Mojca Briscik believes AI will continue to be a powerful tool for advertising, helping teams to accelerate production and explore more creative possibilities. “It will change how brands create, communicate, and compete,” she says. “But the brands that succeed will be those that combine AI capabilities with strong strategy, creativity, and a deep understanding of people.”

How are agencies and brands preparing for the new rules?

Under the new legislation, brands have to be more critical about how and when to use AI, and view it as something that enhances the process rather than doing the job entirely. For agencies, this means prioritising recruiting and nurturing emerging creative talent.

“If the entire strategy is about feeling ‘truly human’, that’s where you see greater nervousness, which is logical and understandable,” concurs DEPT’s EMEA CEO Joanna Trippett.

“I expect we'll move away from experimental usage, for example in organic content, and towards use cases that are more business case-led: asking, is it genuinely more creative, does it convey the idea better, is it more valuable, and not just cheaper? So, this might just be the answer to less AI slop,” she adds.

At DEPT, she explains that the guidelines have been shared with every creative, production and design team, inside Europe and beyond. “Give it a few months and this is simply the new normal,” she says, “A corner-of-frame label as unremarkable as a copyright line.”

At the EACA, they have published a Practitioner's Guide to Article 50 of the EU AI Act, which provides practical guidance on the new transparency and labelling requirements for AI-generated content, and details what needs to be labelled and how responsibilities will be shared between providers and deployers.

Meanwhile, Mojca at the Slovenian Advertising Chamber explains that they have been prioritising education around AI use to help members understand both the opportunities and risks it raises.

“Preparing for AI is not only about regulation; it is about building the skills, mindset, and processes needed for the future,” she says. “The organisations that benefit most will be those that learn how to combine AI capabilities with human creativity, critical thinking, and a deep understanding of people.”

Could it impact production workflows or effectiveness?

The impact of the new regulations means that there will be extra scrutiny on certain aspects of popular culture, like hyperrealistic AI celebrities, product visualisation and scene generation.

The rules might change how brands and agencies view the production process, creating more of an impetus for AI use to be creatively merit-worthy, rather than just used as standard.

“I don’t see regulation as a limitation of creativity,” says Mojca. “Instead, it’s an opportunity to establish more professional, responsible and thoughtful ways of working with AI.”

And according to DEPT’s Joanna, the new regulations have not come as a surprise for responsible brands and agencies. On eBay, the team had built an entirely synthetic avatar campaign long before Article 50 required it.

“It won't change the workflow so much as add a hygiene step,” she concludes. “It’ll create one more design element to account for, like a phone UI mock-up or a resize spec.”

Image credit: Dušan Svetanović