Key facts
- Social platforms like YouTube and TikTok are updating policies regarding AI-generated content.
- YouTube aims to differentiate between AI used for creative enhancement and low-effort AI spam.
- TikTok requires creators to label AI-generated content and is testing spam detection systems.
- The updates reflect a tension between embracing AI and preventing the spread of low-quality machine-generated material.
Social media companies are revising their guidelines on AI-generated content, particularly for accounts that are monetized, as they grapple with the influx of machine-created material. YouTube and TikTok are among the platforms updating their policies to distinguish between AI used to enhance original storytelling and content that is mass-produced or designed to exploit the platform.
YouTube's trust and safety team clarified its stance on July 20, stating the company wants to reward creators who use AI for original storytelling rather than those who mass-produce generic content or AI personas. A YouTube spokesperson noted this is a clarification of its existing 'inauthentic content' policy, aimed at reducing ambiguity for creators who have faced demonetization for repetitive, low-effort, or emotionally manipulative videos. The platform has previously removed channels that gained millions of views by publishing AI-generated videos featuring characters like cats and Jesus. A report by video editing platform Kapwing estimated that 21% of YouTube's feed is comprised of AI-generated videos.
TikTok, along with its owner ByteDance, is actively integrating generative AI tools into its ecosystem, offering AI features for content creation and e-commerce. The company requires creators to label AI-generated content and applies invisible watermarks to some videos. TikTok is also testing enhanced detection systems to target accounts posting AI-generated spam that may overshadow original content, and has allowed users to adjust the amount of AI content in their feeds.