New York's AI Ad Disclosure Law: Disclose Synthetic Performers or Pay the Price

New York's New AI Disclosure Law: What Legal and Marketing Teams Need to Do Before June 2026

AI-generated ads can scale creative fast, but they come with a new legal cost in New York. On December 11, 2025, New York enacted S.8420-A/A.8887-B, a first-of-its-kind law that forces transparency when ads use AI-generated human likenesses.

Starting June 2026, if your ad includes a "synthetic performer," you must add a conspicuous disclosure. Miss it, and you risk fines that compound quickly across a campaign.

What counts as a "synthetic performer"

The statute defines a synthetic performer as a digitally created asset-made or modified by generative AI or a software algorithm-that gives the impression of a human performance but is not recognizable as any real person.

Think AI-generated faces or bodies performing actions in your ad. If it looks like a real human and it's not a real, identifiable person, you're likely in scope.

Who is covered

Anyone producing or creating commercial advertisements shown to the public in New York: brands, agencies, platforms, and their agents or employees. The trigger is actual knowledge that a synthetic performer was used.

This applies across formats: digital, social, display, video, CTV, OOH with digital assets, and more.

The disclosure requirement (and what "conspicuous" means)

The law does not dictate exact wording. It requires a "conspicuous" disclosure in the ad itself-prominent, unavoidable, and noticeable. No fine print. No buried captions. No disappearing text.

• Placement: on-screen and clearly visible for video; near the creative for static/display; audible and/or visual where audio is central.
• Timing: viewable for the full duration when practical; otherwise at the beginning and end with sufficient duration.
• Format: high contrast, readable font size, unambiguous phrasing.

Practical examples (use plain language; test for clarity):

• "This advertisement uses an AI-generated synthetic performer."
• "Includes an AI-generated person."

Penalties

$1,000 for the first violation, $5,000 for each subsequent violation. At scale-multiple creatives, placements, or impressions-noncompliance can stack into serious exposure, plus PR and litigation risk.

Exclusions

• Ads and promotional materials for expressive works (e.g., films, TV, streaming content, documentaries, video games, similar audio/audiovisual works), so long as the synthetic performer is used in the ad consistent with its use in the work.
• AI used solely for language translation.
• Potential narrow carve-outs for some publishers and platforms that only distribute or publish ads.

Action checklist for legal and marketing

• Map exposure: Identify all campaigns running in New York (geo-targeted and national buys that reach New York).
• Inventory AI use: Catalog where generative tools, AI avatars, synthetic voices, or AI-modified humans appear.
• Decide threshold: Align on what counts as a synthetic performer under the statute and document your interpretation for consistency.
• Standardize disclosures: Adopt default disclosure language and placement rules per format (short/long video, display, social, influencer, podcast, CTV).
• Build a pre-flight AI audit: Require creators, agencies, and vendors to flag AI-generated human likenesses and certify accuracy.
• Update contracts: Shift liability with reps, warranties, indemnities, and disclosure obligations for agencies, influencers, and AI vendors.
• Train the team: Creative, media, influencer, and legal ops need a simple checklist and sign-off workflow.
• QA in trafficking: Add a disclosure field to insertion orders, ad servers, and content review so nothing ships without compliance.
• Maintain proof: Keep records of disclosures, creative versions, and knowledge certifications.

Contract terms to add or tighten

• AI usage disclosure: Counterparty must disclose any AI-generated human likeness or synthetic performer used in deliverables.
• Compliance warranty: Deliverables comply with New York's synthetic performer disclosure law and any similar state laws.
• Placement requirements: Specific disclosure language, size, contrast, duration, and positioning by format.
• Approval rights: Brand/legal to approve final disclosure and placement before distribution.
• Indemnity: Allocate responsibility for regulatory fines, claims, and defense costs tied to undisclosed AI use.
• Pass-through obligations: Agencies must impose the same terms on subcontractors and creators.

Influencer and social considerations

If creators use AI avatars or filters that generate non-identifiable human performers, the ad needs the synthetic-performer disclosure in addition to any endorsements disclosures. Treat it like a separate compliance layer.

For endorsement rules and advertiser responsibilities, review the FTC's Endorsement Guides and staff guidance.

FTC Endorsement Guides

Right of publicity: separate but related risk

New York also expanded posthumous right of publicity protections via S.8391/A.8882. It requires consent from heirs or executors to use a deceased individual's name, voice, image, or likeness in commerce, including via a "digital replica."

Exposure includes statutory damages of $2,000 or profits from the unauthorized use (whichever is higher), plus potential punitive damages. If you create AI likenesses of deceased personalities with commercial value at death, secure rights first.

Key dates and scope

• Signed: December 11, 2025
• Applies to: Commercial advertising distributed in New York
• Effective compliance: June 2026

Practical do's and don'ts

• Do use plain, consumer-facing disclosures that are visible and persistent.
• Do test disclosures on mobile, dark mode, and small formats.
• Do train creators and media teams on when disclosures are mandatory.
• Don't bury disclosures in captions, hashtags, or end cards that flash by.
• Don't assume a vendor's "AI safe" stamp equals compliance-validate.

Multi-state outlook

New York is a starting point. Expect other states to propose similar AI disclosure or likeness laws. Build reusable compliance mechanics now so you're not retooling per market.

Next steps

• Run an AI risk audit across current and upcoming campaigns.
• Adopt standard disclosure language and placements per format.
• Update MSAs, SOWs, and influencer agreements with AI clauses.
• Stand up an internal pre-flight certification for synthetic performers.
• Brief leadership on penalty exposure and process changes.

Note: The law arrived in the same season that the President signed an AI-focused executive order signaling support for innovation and potential federal preemption where conflicts arise. Expect ongoing debate and potential alignment shifts. Keep counsel close and keep your documentation tight.

If your team needs practical, role-specific AI training to support compliant creative and media workflows, explore this resource: AI Certification for Marketing Specialists.