Eurocommerce asks EU to exempt AI‑generated ads from AI Act labeling rules

The European retail association Eurocommerce, whose members include Amazon, H&M, Inditex and Ikea, has sent a letter to EU tech commissioner Henna Virkkunen requesting that AI‑generated advertisements be excluded from the transparency obligations of the EU AI Act, which takes effect on 2 August. The Act requires clear labelling of any AI‑generated or AI‑modified content classified as a “deep fake”. Eurocommerce argues that ads not intended to mislead consumers – for example, an AI‑generated image of a living‑room to showcase a sofa – should not fall under this definition, warning that a labeling requirement would cover a very large share of marketing content and dilute the value of the disclosure.

Retailers are already using AI extensively: German online retailer Zalando says 90 % of its marketing material is now produced with AI, while fast‑fashion brands H&M and Zara use AI‑generated model clones. The European Commission has not yet responded to the request.