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ENPTESFRDEIT

The EU AI Act’s transparency rules, in plain language.

Since 2 August 2026, Article 50 has required you to tell people when they’re dealing with AI. Find out in two minutes whether it applies to you — and walk away with the suggested wording to use.

Check if it applies to me Just the facts
In force now — Article 50 has applied since 2 August 2026.

Article 50 is now in force. One carve-out: generative AI systems already on the market before 2 August 2026 have until 2 December 2026 to meet the machine-readable marking rule (under the Digital Omnibus, adopted June 2026, in force since July 2026).

Two-minute check

Does Article 50 apply to you?

Answer five quick questions about how your business uses AI. Your answers stay in your browser — we don’t send or store them.

1. Do you run a chatbot, virtual assistant, voice bot or AI agent that talks directly to your customers or visitors?

Think website chat widgets, WhatsApp bots, AI phone answering, “AI concierge” tools.

2. Do you supply an AI tool or feature that generates text, images, audio or video for other people to use?

This is about being a provider — e.g. you’ve built and released a custom GPT, an app, or an AI feature others rely on. (Just using ChatGPT yourself doesn’t count here.)

3. Do you publish AI-generated or AI-edited images, audio or video showing real people, places or events in a way that could look genuine?

Deepfake-style marketing, AI voice-overs of real voices, “de-aged” or face-swapped footage, realistic AI images of real places.

4. Do you publish AI-written text to inform the public on matters of public interest?

News, current affairs, health, politics, consumer information. Not applicable if a person reviews and takes editorial responsibility for it.

5. Do you use AI to recognise people’s emotions or sort them by biometric characteristics?

Face-based age or sentiment analysis, “mood” detection, biometric audience categorisation.

The rules, briefly

What Article 50 actually says

Article 50 of the EU AI Act (Regulation (EU) 2024/1689) adds four transparency duties. They apply to any business whose AI use fits — not just “high-risk” systems, and open-source isn’t exempt. If you are established in the EU, or the output of your AI system is used in the EU, it reaches you.

2 Aug 2026The day the transparency duties started to apply. They are now in force — the Digital Omnibus did not push them back.
4Situations covered: AI you chat with, AI-generated content, deepfakes / public-interest text, and emotion / biometric AI.
€15M / 3%Maximum fine for breaching Article 50 — €15 million or 3% of worldwide annual turnover, whichever is higher. For SMEs and start-ups it’s the lower of the two (Art 99(6)).
2 Dec 2026The one bit of breathing room: generative systems already on the market get until December for machine-readable marking.

Talking to people Providers · Art 50(1)

If your AI interacts directly with people (chatbots, voice assistants, agents), you must make sure they’re told it’s AI — clearly, and at the latest by the first interaction. Exception: where it’s genuinely obvious, or certain law-enforcement uses.

AI-generated content Providers · Art 50(2)

If you supply AI that generates text, images, audio or video, its outputs must be marked in a machine-readable way and detectable as AI-generated. Carved out: systems that only assist with standard editing, or that don’t substantially alter your input or its meaning. The duty is also qualified by what is technically feasible and the state of the art.

Deepfakes & public-interest text Deployers · Art 50(4)

If you use AI to create or manipulate media of real people or events, or AI-written text informing the public on matters of public interest, you must disclose it. Lighter touch for clearly artistic or satirical work; not needed for public-interest text a human has reviewed and taken editorial responsibility for.

Emotion & biometric AI Deployers · Art 50(3)

If you use AI to recognise emotions or categorise people biometrically, you must inform the people exposed to it — and comply with data-protection law (GDPR). Narrow exception for AI permitted by law to detect or investigate criminal offences. Note: emotion recognition in workplaces and schools is separately banned outright under Article 5 — not merely something to disclose — save for medical or safety reasons.

Read the official text — European Commission: Article 50 · Article 5 · Article 99 (penalties). Official guidance: Guidelines on Article 50 (adopted 20 July 2026) · Code of Practice on Transparency of AI-generated Content (final, 10 June 2026). Plain-English guide: Article 50 explained (independent source).

Straight answers

Common questions

I only use ChatGPT / AI tools — am I caught?
Often less than you’d fear. Simply using AI internally isn’t the trigger. You’re caught mainly when your AI talks to your customers (a chatbot), or when you publish AI-generated content externally — deepfake-style media, or public-interest text without human editorial sign-off. The checker above sorts this out for you.
What’s the difference between a “provider” and a “deployer”?
Roughly: a provider makes or supplies the AI system; a deployer uses one under their own authority. Most small businesses are deployers. The chatbot and content-marking duties fall on providers; the deepfake, public-interest-text and emotion/biometric duties fall on deployers. You can be both.
Didn’t the “Digital Omnibus” delay all this?
No. The Digital Omnibus (adopted June 2026, in force since July 2026) pushed back some high-risk deadlines — but Article 50’s transparency duties still apply from 2 August 2026. The only concession: generative systems already on the market before that date get until 2 December 2026 to meet the machine-readable marking requirement.
What does a compliant disclosure look like?
Clear, distinguishable, and shown at the latest at the first interaction or exposure — and it must meet accessibility requirements. What doesn’t pass: tiny footer text, a label that flashes for an instant, or anything buried in the terms and conditions. That is a separate question from the machine-readable marking in Article 50(2), where invisible watermarks and metadata are exactly what is expected. The wording in your pack is written to be used up-front and in plain sight.
Is this legal advice?
No — and that’s important. This is a plain-language explainer and a set of templates to get you moving. Article 50 has genuine grey areas (what counts as “obvious”, “public interest”, “substantial alteration”), and your exact situation may need a professional view. Use this to understand the shape of it and to act quickly; take proper advice on anything you’re unsure about.
Not legal advice. Disclosed. is an information and template tool, not a law firm. The EU AI Act’s official text, the European Commission’s Article 50 Guidelines and the Code of Practice on Transparency of AI-generated Content are the authoritative sources. Nothing here creates a solicitor–client relationship, and it can’t account for your specific circumstances. For decisions with real consequences, consult a qualified adviser in your jurisdiction.

Straight answers

Questions, answered in depth

Research

Research

Original fieldwork on how the Article 50 transparency rules are actually showing up in front of people.

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