A New York law that took effect in June requires commercial ad producers to disclose AI-generated human-looking performers — or face fines up to $5,000 per incident. Platforms that run the ad owe nothing; the liability sits with whoever made it.

A New York law that took effect in June makes commercial ad producers responsible for disclosing when a fake AI-generated human appears in their work — and sets a $5,000-per-incident penalty for anyone who doesn't.

The Synthetic Performer Disclosure Law, codified at New York General Business Law §396-B, covers visual depictions of AI-generated figures "intended to create the impression" of a real human who is not an identifiable, actual person. A first violation runs $1,000; each subsequent offense costs $5,000. The fine falls on whoever produces or creates the ad — not on the TV station, streaming service, or cable provider that airs it. The structure echoes the federal Section 230 model: platforms carry no liability for content they didn't make.

The law's geographic reach is notable. Enforcement is triggered when the ad appears on a screen in New York — a phone, a laptop, a television — regardless of where the ad maker is based. An out-of-state agency running national digital buys now has a New York disclosure obligation every time the spot loads on a device in the five boroughs.

Several carve-outs narrow the mandate: audio-only ads with AI-generated voices are exempt, and ads promoting movies, TV shows, streaming content, or video games are excluded when the AI-generated performer appears consistently in the underlying work. Consumers have no private right to sue — only state agencies can levy the fine.

The law arrives as AI image generation has become cheap enough that small advertisers, not just large agencies, can produce ads without a human in front of a camera. The disclosure requirement doesn't specify format, size, or duration — leaving open how prominently the notice needs to appear and at what point in a twelve-second pop-up ad it triggers.