There is a significant amount of controversy when it comes to AI content. But the numbers tell their own story: ChatGPT reports around 1 billion monthly active users globally – and that’s before Claude, Gemini and Copilot are even added to the mix. 

We’re also lapping up AI in the UK, with estimates standing at around 26.4 million Gen AI users across the country – a figure which is increasing year on year. 

It is fair then to say that despite the hype and fearmongering, we are absolutely invested in an AI future. 

This too is fair in the marketing world, where research from Siege Media + Wynter found that 97% of content marketers plan to use AI to support their creative efforts in 2026 – up from 64.7% in 2023. And indeed, scroll through LinkedIn right now, and it is likely that AI had a hand in a significant amount of newsfeed posts and articles (no judgement). 

While this hasn’t done much to fuel scepticism around when AI has/hasn’t been used to create written or visual content, such is the advancement of the technology that the lines are becoming increasingly blurred between man vs machine generated content. It is all a bit Black Mirror as we, as consumers, seek to spot the difference. 

However, later this summer, any muddy waters might clear somewhat. While the EU Artificial Intelligence Act itself has been in force since August 2024, from 2 August 2026 one of its most consequential provisions for anyone working in content – Article 50 – becomes enforceable. 

This world-first legal framework for AI was created to place safe, ethical, and human-centric AI at the heart of its use. With only 46% of people globally saying they’re willing to trust AI systems, according to KPMG and the University of Melbourne’s global study, the regulation could turn things around for the perception of brands using AI as part of their content strategy. 

That’s because Article 50 sets out transparency requirements for specific, defined uses of AI, including AI chatbots, deepfakes, synthetic media, emotion-recognition and biometric systems, along with AI-generated text published on matters of public interest. 

Article 50 will also impact those responsible for building AI tools, who must mark their outputs with machine-readable metadata identifying them as artificially generated. It will also touch consumer-facing businesses using chatbots, who must make it clear if customers are engaging with an AI interface rather than a human one. 

Where it gets more interesting for the marketing industry is Article 50(4): anyone using AI to generate or manipulate text published to inform the public on matters of public interest will need to disclose that AI was involved – unless a human has reviewed and edited it, and someone takes overall editorial responsibility for the final piece. 

With any regulation, it is worth underlining what the Act doesn’t cover: that being pure product marketing and corporate communications. However, the provision starts to bite when content is styled to look like editorial or news content – think native advertising or thought-leadership dressed up as independent commentary, rather than an obviously branded product page. 

This could still be a gamechanger for those working across advertising, marketing and PR – not because every piece of content will require a disclaimer, but because founder videos, “authentic” testimonials, behind-the-scenes content and anything mimicking editorial formats are exactly the categories the Act has in its sights. 

So, for the many organisations which have made a shift to creating a high volume of content using AI – particularly where that content is presented as independent, editorial-style thinking, as they seek to maintain profile and keep online channels “fresh” – we could be reaching a tipping point.  

Recommended reading

• Gartner: By 2027, Over 40% of Agentic AI Projects Will Be Cancelled
• HubSpot: 84% of UK Marketers Now Use AI Daily
• Majority of Companies Already Past AI Agent Experimentation Phase

Rather than organisations seeing content volume (also considered by some to be visibility) as a marker of success, we could see a pivot back to brands taking a much more personal, human approach to their content creation strategies. 

For B2B brands, this is likely to benefit not only from an authenticity perspective, but boost competitive differentiation, as messages are bespoke, and opinions personal. I would also be interested to see how the AI trust dial moves once Article 50 is live. 

In a time when people buy from people, and connection between a brand and customer is so very important, my hope is that (perhaps for once), a new regulation doesn’t feel like a control/power move, but one which will enable transparency and more trust resulting in a stronger relationship between a brand and their audience. 

If you have questions about whether your content will require an AI disclaimer, drop Kirsten a line via hello@brassneckhq.com.