Google is rolling out a new feature that will allow users to see whether advertisements were created or modified using artificial intelligence, marking a broader push to improve transparency as generative AI becomes increasingly integrated into digital advertising.
The new disclosure tool expands Google’s efforts to help consumers distinguish between authentic product imagery and AI-generated content, addressing growing concerns that synthetic images could blur the line between marketing and reality.
The feature will be available through Google’s My Ad Center, which users can access globally by clicking the three-dot menu or information icon displayed on advertisements appearing in Google Search, YouTube, and Google Discover.
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New “How this ad was made” section
Under the update, users will see a new option labeled “How this ad was made.”
When selected, the feature will indicate whether an advertisement was created or edited using artificial intelligence.
The disclosure is intended to provide additional context rather than suggest that AI-generated advertisements violate Google’s advertising policies.
Google continues to prohibit deceptive or misleading advertising regardless of whether AI is used to produce the content. Instead, the company said the new labels are designed to give users greater visibility into how digital advertisements are produced as AI-generated marketing materials become more common.
The move was necessitated by the rapid adoption of generative AI across the advertising industry. Businesses increasingly use AI tools to generate product images, create promotional graphics and place merchandise into digitally generated environments without conducting traditional photo shoots.
For advertisers, the technology can significantly reduce production costs, shorten campaign development times, and allow brands to produce multiple versions of advertisements tailored to different audiences. Retailers, for example, can use AI to place clothing, furniture or consumer products into a wide range of virtual settings without photographing each item individually.
While those capabilities improve efficiency, they have also raised concerns that consumers may assume AI-generated images are genuine photographs of products, potentially creating unrealistic expectations.
The new disclosure aims to address that concern by informing users when synthetic content has been used in creating an advertisement.
Automatic Labels for Google’s AI Tools
Google said advertisers using the company’s own generative AI advertising tools will not need to take additional action. If an advertisement is created using Google’s AI products, the disclosure will be applied automatically.
However, advertisements produced with third-party AI software will rely on advertiser self-reporting.
Google is introducing a new control that allows advertisers to indicate whether AI played a role in creating or editing their advertisements. The company said it will not independently verify whether third-party advertisements were generated using artificial intelligence. Instead, responsibility for providing accurate disclosures will rest with advertisers.
In certain jurisdictions, advertisements may also receive AI labels where required under local laws or regulations governing synthetic media.
The update represents a significant expansion of Google’s AI transparency efforts. Until now, the company primarily required AI-related disclosures for election advertising, where concerns about manipulated media and misinformation have attracted heightened regulatory scrutiny.
The broader rollout is targeted at the growing prevalence of generative AI in commercial advertising, where synthetic images and videos are increasingly used for mainstream marketing campaigns rather than only for political communications.
As AI-generated content becomes more sophisticated and often indistinguishable from traditional photography, technology companies have faced increasing pressure from regulators and consumer advocates to provide clearer disclosures.
However, Google’s move aligns with wider efforts across the technology industry to improve transparency around AI-generated content.
Governments in several jurisdictions are considering or implementing rules requiring companies to disclose the use of synthetic media, particularly where consumers could mistake AI-generated content for authentic images or videos.
Technology companies have also introduced measures such as digital watermarking, metadata standards and AI-generated content labels to help identify synthetic media.
Google said the feature will be available globally, giving users a clearer understanding of how the advertisements they encounter across Google’s platforms were created as artificial intelligence becomes a common tool in online marketing.