[EU AI Act] If you use AI generated images for your ads or product catalogue and sell to EU countries, you should start labeling them NOW

Well so I've been doing a lot of research on this since I've always been quite interested in the AI image generation space and went through the rabbit hole as soon as I started seeing more of these news and posts on LinkedIn and Reddit that the EU AI Act was coming.

For starters, it was on the 1 August 2024 that the EU AI Act first came into force. Yet, it wasn't until 2 August 2026, barely more than week from now, that the bulk of general rules became applicable. The ones that concern e-commerce and digital marketing the most are the transparency rules.

If you use AI generated graphics for your ads or your product catalogue, a new obligation concerns you. And failure to comply can result in fines up to €15 million or 3% of worldwide annual turnover, whichever is higher (depends on the scale of the infringement and the company's revenue of course, but that's the set ceiling).

You have to add an AI disclosure label.

What does this mean? Adding a simple label that discloses the image was generated/modified by AI and make it visible enough so it can be noticed by a customer.

The goal? Allegedly, to push marketers to be open and transparent about what's real and what's AI in the products they advertise.

The European Commission published a set of rules on how display the icons on their article 'EU Icons for labelling AI-generated content'. Basically, it all comes down to this:

1. Visible at first exposure. Not in the caption, not in the product description.
2. Clear of overlays and any intervening element: the label is meant to be just a label, not disguised as a decoration.
3. Embedded in the image itself, so it survives a download or a reshare. An interface overlay counts only if it does the same job.
4. Legible in size, and on screen long enough to read if it only appears briefly.
5. Plain wording on any text label. "AI" is the only abbreviation they accept.
6. If possible, Alt text or an ARIA label as a supplement so screen readers get it too (if the label itsel cannot be aria-labeled since its embedded, add a disclosure in the Alt text or ARIA label to the image)

Placement is written as guidance and the accessibility items as encouragement, not hard set rules.

Now, does every AI generated graphics needs to have a label? Not really.

The rule turns on one definition: an AI-generated or manipulated image that resembles existing persons, objects, places, entities or events, and would falsely appear authentic to the person looking at it.

Two of the Commission's three icons cover most catalogue work. Fully AI-generated means no human-made content in the image and no editorial control beyond prompting. Partially AI-modified means real material that AI altered.

Run your own catalogue against it:

• A photoreal render of a shoe you sell, in a studio that never existed. Needs a label. Fully AI-generated.
• Your real garment worn by an AI-generated model. Needs a label. Partially AI-modified.
• An authentic photograph of an empty apartment, furnished with AI. Needs a label. Partially AI-modified. This one is the Commission's own example.
• A real product photo with the background extended by generative fill. Needs a label. Partially AI-modified, and the case most teams miss.
• A campaign illustration nobody would mistake for a photograph. No label. It fails the authenticity test.
• A fully synthetic living room with none of your products in it. No label. It resembles nothing real.

Most catalogues are already full of AI-touched photography that nobody thinks of as an AI image, because a person took the photo and a tool only fixed it afterwards. And with the right prompting and one of the latest generative model, you can produce extremely realistic results that pass the eye test for just about anyone (as long as they're not looking too deep into it), so the time where you have to be upfront about it has finally come for those who intend on continue using this technology to sell stuff on Europe.

Marketplace sellers have it worse too. Your listing photo gets cropped, thumbnailed and badged by a platform you do not control. Alt text and metadata do not travel with it, which is why neither can carry the disclosure on its own. Pixels do.

Burning the mark into the image at export is the version that holds.

Using the Commission's icons is optional, but disclosing is not.

You can find the official icons suggested by the European Commision just googling 'EU Icons for labelling AI-generated content' and go to the first result which belongs to their official site (I'd add the link here but I believe its against the rule in this sub). If you cannot find it or need any more information, feel free to leave a comment or even DM me.

TL;DR: Since 2 August 2026, AI images that pass as real photographs need a visible disclosure when they reach EU buyers. The duty is yours as the publisher, not your generator's. The label has to be embedded in the image so it survives a download. Obviously stylised or fictional work is exempt. Fines can get pretty bad.

So, how are you guys preparing for this? Will you comply, will you just not bother with the EU market anymore, or are you already taking compliance measures? I'd be happy to hear it.