Senate Bill Requires Companies to Label AI-Generated Materials

A bipartisan bill introduced in the Senate is seeking to require companies to declare whether digital materials such as images, video and audio are artificial intelligence-generated products. 

Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, introduced the AI Labeling Act of 2023 with Sen. John Kennedy, R-La. Under the bill, AI-made content should be marked with a label that consumers could clearly see to avoid deception, misinformation and fraud. Including notices in such materials will also help companies build trust in their content, the Schatz’s office said.

Speaking on the Senate floor, Schatz highlighted the importance of providing AI-generated notices to the public, noting the increasing number of fake images, doctored videos and manipulated audio on social media. 

“Whether we’re watching TV, answering the phone, or scrolling through our social media feeds, it has become harder and harder to trust our own eyes and our own ears,” the senator said.

ChatGPT, a chatbot from OpenAI, is one of the existing technologies using generative AI to provide answers to queries and personalized content. OpenAI is currently under a Federal Trade Commission investigation over a potential violation of consumer protection laws. 

The FTC launched the probe after receiving complaints from consumers indicating that ChatGPT provided “false, misleading, disparaging or harmful” information about individuals.