Google Thursday that it will automatically apply a “created or processed with AI” to ads generated by its own generative AI. The move is a major step towards transparency in the world of digital advertising, as users will now be able to tell whether what they see was created by a human or an algorithm. The announcement applies to ads on Google Search, Google Discover and YouTube.
Specifically, users can find this label through Google’s revamped “My Ad Center,” under the “how this ad was made” tab . To access this information, simply tap the three dots or the information button that appears above each ad. The same panel also allows users to block or report an ad as inappropriate.
See also: Google, Meta, Spotify and Sony react to Belgium's creator payment law in EU court
It’s worth noting that the automatic application of the label only to Google AI ads, which are created with the company’s own tools. For ads produced with third-party AI tools, the label must be applied manually by the advertiser. In some regions, the label may appear directly on the ad — either automatically or when the advertiser chooses to disclose it themselves.
Google AI Ads: Why Transparency Is Critical Today
The need to clearly label AI-generated content in ads is no coincidence. In recent years, the use of tools generative AI in creating advertising material has exploded, with companies using algorithms to generate images, videos, texts and even voice messages. This raises serious questions about authenticity, consumer deception and the spread of deepfake content. Google 's label comes to give users a tool to critically evaluate what they see.
Meta a similar labeling system, with the “AI info” appearing in the “About this ad” for ads on its platforms, including Facebook and Instagram. The move shows that big tech companies are starting to recognize the importance of transparency with users, especially in an era where AI can produce incredibly realistic content.
See also: Google Search Console: Platform Properties feature is coming – What's changing
Google AI Ads and SynthID: The Technology Behind the Label
Google isn’t stopping at just a simple tag. Earlier this year, the company expanded access to SynthID and Coalition for Content Provenance and Authenticity ( C2PA ) tags , technologies that enable deepfake content detection . SynthID embeds invisible watermarks into AI-generated images , audio, and video, while C2PA provides provenance metadata that proves whether a file has been digitally altered. These technologies are part of a broader strategy to combat misinformation.
Google had already introduced mandatory disclosure for “synthetic or digitally altered content” in political adsThe new label for Google AI ads extends this logic to all ad categories, regardless of subject matter. This means that even a simple ad for an everyday product will carry the label if it was created with AI.
For Greek users, this change is particularly important, as the use of AI in advertising is rapidly increasing in the Greek market as well. Many businesses, from small companies to large organizations, are now using tools generative AI to reduce the cost of producing advertising material. The ability for the consumer to know if an advertisement is AI-generated gives them an additional critical thinking tool.
See also: Google: IP addresses for ads in the EU and the UK?
According to The Verge, the new feature is already available, and Google plans to gradually expand it to more markets and ad formats. The company hasn't yet revealed which countries will see the label appear directly on the ad, but the trend is clear: transparency in AI-generated content is now becoming an industry standard.
