TikTok’s policy for AI ads isn’t working | The VergeSkip to main contentThe homepageThe VergeThe Verge logo.The VergeThe Verge logo.TechReviewsScienceEntertainmentAIPolicyHamburger Navigation ButtonThe homepageThe VergeThe Verge logo.Hamburger Navigation ButtonNavigation DrawerThe VergeThe Verge logo.Login / Sign UpcloseCloseSearchTechExpandAmazonAppleFacebookGoogleMicrosoftSamsungBusinessSee all techReviewsExpandSmart Home ReviewsPhone ReviewsTablet ReviewsHeadphone ReviewsSee all reviewsScienceExpandSpaceEnergyEnvironmentHealthSee all scienceEntertainmentExpandTV ShowsMoviesAudioSee all entertainmentAIExpandOpenAIAnthropicSee all AIPolicyExpandAntitrustPoliticsLawSecuritySee all policyGadgetsExpandLaptopsPhonesTVsHeadphonesSpeakersWearablesSee all gadgetsVerge ShoppingExpandBuying GuidesDealsGift GuidesSee all shoppingGamingExpandXboxPlayStationNintendoSee all gamingStreamingExpandDisneyHBONetflixYouTubeCreatorsSee all streamingTransportationExpandElectric CarsAutonomous CarsRide-sharingScootersSee all transportationFeaturesVerge VideoExpandTikTokYouTubeInstagramPodcastsExpandDecoderThe VergecastVersion HistoryNewslettersArchivesStoreVerge Product UpdatesSubscribeFacebookThreadsInstagramYoutubeRSSThe VergeThe Verge logo.TikTok’s policy for AI ads isn’t workingComments DrawerCommentsLoading commentsGetting the conversation ready...AICloseAIPosts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All AIReportCloseReportPosts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All ReportTechCloseTechPosts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All TechTikTok’s policy for AI ads isn’t workingCompanies that are supposedly pro-transparency can’t even be honest with each other, let alone the rest of us.Companies that are supposedly pro-transparency can’t even be honest with each other, let alone the rest of us.by Jess WeatherbedCloseJess WeatherbedNews ReporterPosts from this author will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All by Jess WeatherbedMar 28, 2026, 2:00 PM UTCLinkShareGiftSamsung, like many companies using generative AI in their advertising, hasn’t placed an AI label on several videos shared through its TikTok accounts, and the fine print doesn’t always contain the answers. Image by SamsungJess WeatherbedCloseJess WeatherbedPosts from this author will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All by Jess Weatherbed is a news writer focused on creative industries, computing, and internet culture. Jess started her career at TechRadar, covering news and hardware reviews.I’ve been struggling to tell whether the ads appearing in my TikTok feeds have been made with generative AI tools. As someone who spends a great deal of time scrutinizing images and videos for the usual “tells” that something was synthetically generated, some of the promotions I’ve seen have definitely sparked suspicion. For several weeks, I didn’t see any examples with the AI disclosure required by TikTok’s advertising policies, however, so I had no way of knowing for sure.What irks me is that someone knows for sure if the content is AI-generated. They’re just not telling the rest of us. And if companies that claim to support AI-labelling initiatives actually want them to succeed, they should probably do something about that.Take Samsung, for example. After slopping AI-generated videos across its social media channels, I started to notice ads teasing the Galaxy S26 Ultra’s privacy display feature appearing on my TikTok. Videos from what appears to be the same promotional campaign had been published to YouTube with disclosures in their collapsed descriptions that AI tools had been used to make them. By comparison, the TikTok ads gave no indication of whether AI had been used. Regular videos on Samsung’s TikTok accounts — those not actively promoted as ads — also lack AI disclosures, despite those same videos being labeled as AI-generated on YouTube.It’s important to note that both Samsung and TikTok are members of the Content Authenticity Initiative, a group that aims to make content authenticity and transparency “scalable and accessible” by promoting the industry-wide adoption of C2PA. That means TikTok and Samsung supposedly share similar ideals regarding the labelling of AI content. If Samsung knowingly used AI to make its videos, it should have told TikTok when the ads were submitted. If TikTok was informed, it should have made sure its users were aware, per the platform’s own advertising policies.The video seen on the left was disclosed as an ad when it appeared on my timeline, but not that AI was used to make it, and Samsung hasn’t been on top of labeling its regular videos as AI-generated either. Image by Samsung / The VergeAdvertisers on TikTok are only permitted to use content “significantly” edited or generated by AI if they make that known. That can be achieved by applying TikTok’s own AI label, or by adding a disclaimer, caption, watermark, or sticker of the advertiser’s choosing, according to the video platform’s business advertising policy:“When we say ‘significantly modified by AI,’ we mean content that has been changed by AI beyond minor tweaks or enhancements. This includes using real images or videos as source material but altering them substantially with AI, such as:•Content that contains images, video, or audio that are completely AI-generated•Showing the primary subject doing something they didn’t actually do, like dancing.•Making the primary subject say something they didn’t actually say, using AI voice-cloning.”So what happened?Samsung did not respond to my requests for comment. TikTok pointed me to its AI labeling requirements for advertisers and its C2PA partnership, but declined to provide an on-record statement on why Samsung’s AI-generated ads received a pass. I’m still in the dark regarding what step of this transparency process failed.I spotted a new development earlier this week — TikTok ads promoted by UK-based used car retailer Cazoo that I had previously encountered without a disclosure now have a message that reads “advertiser labeled as AI-generated” at the bottom, beside the “Ad” identifier. I already suspected the ads in question were likely AI-generated because they all contained bizarre visual distortions that had no rational editing explanation, such as a dentist’s drill morphing into different shapes and jumping between hands.Notice the “advertiser labeled as AI-generated” tag at the bottom of this ad example on the left — it wasn’t on previous versions of this ad i’ve seen, nor was any AI usage disclosed on the non-ad video published on Cazoo’s account (seen right). Image by Cazoo / The VergeI can’t tell if Samsung’s ads on TikTok have undergone a similar update because it’s been several days since any were promoted to my feeds. AI transparency across Samsung’s TikTok accounts is generally a mess though — some have TikTok’s own AI label applied, others have a disclosure manually included in the video fine print, and several AI-generated examples carry no disclosure at all.There is currently no trusted technological solution for reliably identifying AI-generated content, or even human-made content, at scale. I’ve spent plenty of time banging on about the flaws of authentication standards like C2PA Content Credentials, SynthID, and other provenance-based systems that try to inform users of how a piece of content was made — they need everyone to be on board to work effectively, and that simply isn’t happening. That’s a problem when people are struggling to know what’s real and what isn’t in this current geo-political landscape.But that applies to online content generally, whereas advertising is a regulated industry that’s supposed to play by a different set of rules.RelatedDoes Big Tech actually care about fighting AI slop?Many of these rules were put into place to protect consumers from being misled or outright lied to by advertisers, such as laws that prevent cosmetics companies from slapping false lashes onto models to sell their mascaras. TikTok beauty influencers like Mikayla Nogueira have found out the hard way that these rules apply to them when promoting products, and that their audiences tend to react badly to dishonest shilling tactics.That isn’t to say that generated videos are always misleading, but concerns around advertising transparency have prompted the EU, China, and South Korea to introduce labeling requirements for AI in promotional materials. Even companies that haven’t pledged to support AI transparency initiatives could risk future fines if they don’t get their act together.If large online platforms like TikTok and advertisers like Samsung can’t be honest with each other about AI usage in such a regulated environment, well, then anyone can advertise whatever nonsense they want. I’m happy that at least some ad-specific AI labels are starting to appear on TikTok after I directly flagged the ads to the companies involved. But this is a simple two-way system that should already be robustly implemented and enforced without needing people like me to scrutinize every ad in their feeds.Follow topics and authors from this story to see more like this in your personalized homepage feed and to receive email updates.Jess WeatherbedCloseJess WeatherbedNews ReporterPosts from this author will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All by Jess WeatherbedAICloseAIPosts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All AICreatorsCloseCreatorsPosts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All CreatorsReportCloseReportPosts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All ReportTechCloseTechPosts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All TechTikTokCloseTikTokPosts from this topic will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed.FollowFollowSee All TikTokMost PopularMost PopularSony is raising PS5 prices by $100 in AprilReturning from a humanitarian aid trip to Cuba, Americans have phones seized at US airportRank the 50 best Apple productsMeta gets ready to launch two new Ray-Ban AI glassesAnker’s 160W Prime Charger can power three devices at once, and it’s $50 offThe Verge DailyA free daily digest of the news that matters most.Email (required)Sign UpBy submitting your email, you agree to our Terms and Privacy Notice. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.Advertiser Content FromThis is the title for the native adMore in AIThe latest in data centers, AI, and energy Judge sides with Anthropic to temporarily block the Pentagon’s banDavid Sacks is no longer the White House AI and Crypto CzarGoogle is making it easier to import another AI’s memory into GeminiApple will reportedly allow other AI chatbots to plug into SiriApple’s AI Playlist Playground is bad at musicThe latest in data centers, AI, and energy Verge Staff and Justine CalmaMar 26Judge sides with Anthropic to temporarily block the Pentagon’s banHayden FieldMar 27David Sacks is no longer the White House AI and Crypto CzarTina NguyenMar 26Google is making it easier to import another AI’s memory into GeminiStevie BonifieldMar 26Apple will reportedly allow other AI chatbots to plug into SiriEmma RothMar 26Apple’s AI Playlist Playground is bad at musicTerrence O'BrienMar 26Advertiser Content FromThis is the title for the native adTop StoriesMar 27Rank the 50 best Apple products7:00 AM UTCBluetti’s Sora 500 solar panel is incredibly powerful for its size11:00 AM UTCOppo made the best foldable phone, againTwo hours agoWhy OpenAI killed SoraTwo hours agoThe must-have app for frequent flyersAn hour agoA classic Zelda-style adventure, but a lot more cozyThe VergeThe Verge logo.FacebookThreadsInstagramYoutubeRSSContactTip UsCommunity GuidelinesArchivesAboutEthics StatementHow We Rate and Review ProductsCookie SettingsTerms of UsePrivacy NoticeCookie PolicyLicensing FAQAccessibilityPlatform Status© 2026 Vox Media, LLC. All Rights Reserved

TikTok’s policy for AI ads isn’t working, exposing a critical gap in the platform’s transparency efforts and highlighting inconsistencies within the advertising ecosystem. The core issue, as articulated by Jess Weatherbed, centers on Samsung’s utilization of generative AI in its promotional videos disseminated through TikTok, specifically regarding the Galaxy S26 Ultra’s privacy display feature. While Samsung’s YouTube ads were accompanied by disclosures detailing the use of AI, the corresponding TikTok ads conspicuously lacked this crucial information. This disparity underscores a fundamental problem: the platform’s own advertising policies, designed to ensure consumer understanding of AI-generated content, were not being consistently applied.

The problem is further complicated by TikTok’s membership within the Content Authenticity Initiative (C2PA), a collaborative effort aimed at establishing industry-wide standards for content provenance and transparency. Despite this affiliation, Samsung’s actions demonstrate a lack of adherence to the principles of open communication regarding AI usage, suggesting a disconnect between the stated goals of the initiative and its practical implementation. The policy stipulates that advertisers must clearly indicate when content is “significantly” altered by AI, through mechanisms like AI labels, disclaimers, or watermarks. Samsung’s inconsistent application of this policy—some regular videos labeled AI-generated, others not—directly contradicts this guidance.

Weatherbed’s investigation reveals a concerning pattern, with both Samsung and the UK-based used car retailer Cazoo exhibiting varying degrees of compliance. Cazoo’s ads, initially lacking disclosure, eventually gained a “advertiser labeled as AI-generated” tag, suggesting a reactive rather than proactive approach to transparency. The absence of any disclosure on several Samsung TikTok ads further reinforces the issue. The core of the argument presented by Weatherbed is that a system predicated on transparency requires a two-way process of communication between platforms and advertisers, a process that appears to be failing in this instance.

The reliance on C2PA Content Credentials and similar provenance-based systems is noted, but the reporter highlights a crucial point: the effectiveness of these technologies hinges on universal adoption, a factor currently lacking within the advertising industry. These systems aim to provide verifiable information about content creation, yet their utility is diminished when key players, like TikTok and advertisers, are not consistently utilizing them. The broader context of regulatory scrutiny—including EU, Chinese, and South Korean mandates—adds weight to the need for greater transparency, particularly given the potential for misleading consumers and undermining trust.

Weatherbed analogizes the situation to cosmetics companies deceptively altering models' appearances, emphasizing the importance of honesty and clear communication in advertising. The underlying concern is not merely about the technical aspects of AI generation but about the ethical responsibility of companies to inform consumers about the nature of the content they are encountering. The situation underscores a critical flaw in the current landscape: a lack of robust enforcement mechanisms and a reliance on self-regulation, which, as demonstrated by Samsung’s actions, has proven insufficient. The reporter's conclusions suggest a need for stricter oversight and a more proactive approach to ensuring that AI-generated advertising adheres to industry standards and protects consumer understanding.