AI Symbol Announced For Optional Tagging of AI Generated Content – Will Anyone Use It?

Artificial Intelligence

by Alexandra ThompsonOctober 19^th, 2023

As AI-generated images continue gaining momentum in the art world, Adobe is set to give creators the tool (and the encouragement) to identify where and when they use AI. Enter Adobe’s new content credentials button, which will allow users to identify content and provide transparency in their work. That is… if they want to.

The symbol, a lowercase ‘cr’ in what looks like a ‘speak bubble’, was developed as part of the Coalition for Content Provenance and Authenticity (C2PA), which is a new, open technology based on “an open technical specification developed and maintained by the C2PA, a cross-industry standards development organization.”

According to Adobe, when someone opts to use the content credentials button, which they refer to as an “icon of transparency”, in their work, the information will be embedded in the metadata. Hover over the symbol on an image, and a dropdown menu appears. The hope is that by adding information and recognition for all the creatives involved will provide recognition and transparency, but will also allow creatives to connect with each other and their audience.

It’s all about trust

You may be aware of the spread of “deepfakes”. For example, maybe you have seen photos that use face-swapping, or lip-syncing voices where the mouth movements in videos match an audio file. Sources like NewsGuard are now providing fact-checking on the vast amount of misinformation and false narrative that has been spreading throughout social media networks – much of it through deepfakes. In fact, there is so much concern over these images, which could potentially cause serious harm if abused, that the U.S. government has gotten into the picture. Hoping to stop the quell of misinformation, a non-binding agreement with tech companies was signed to develop a system that helps identify AI-generated data.

Content credentials – is everyone on board?

Companies like Microsoft, although they aren’t required to do so, will begin implementing the new symbol in the coming months. Google already has their own SynthID, and Digimarc released a digital watermark that gives you copyright information to track data. Andy Parsons, the Senior Director of Adobe’s Content Authenticity Initiative speaking to the Verge, described the symbol as a “nutrition label”, and his hope was that it would encourage the tagging of AI-generated information.

It’s hard to know whether creators will use the content credentials button – strict privacy laws mean it will remain optional. And of course, even if you add information to your content, the next person in the loop can remove it quite easily. For more information, check out Adobe’s website.

So will you use any of these transparency tools in your work? Do you see a future for this kind of mark? Let us know in the comments below!