Everything you need to know about emerging AI image regulations

NY and CA now require AI labels on marketing images with AI humans. Learn what the rules mean for ecommerce brands and how to avoid fines.

Liz Giorgi
CEO & Co-Founder

March 19, 2026

Did you know that New York recently passed legislation requiring AI labeling of their images? And California too? We’re here to help you understand the rules and help you navigate your options to best represent your brand and your product with shoppers.

• The Law: State of New York’s SB8420A requires AI labels for any marketing or advertising images with an AI human beginning June 8, 2026
• How it Works: AI images in general are not a problem - you can still use them! But if there is an AI generated human in an image or a video and its purpose is advertising or marketing a product or service, you need to label it as being AI generated.
• What it means for you: If you don’t label your images, you can be fined $1,000 for the first image and $5,000 per subsequent images if you sell to consumers in New York.
• It doesn’t include: AI generated or AI supported product images placed in synthetic environments, like those you can create in soona’s AI studio. You also don’t need to disclose if AI was used in your creative development process.
• Why should you care? Besides the deep fines for not meeting the labeling requirement, Gartner recently revealed that half of consumers prefer when brands DON’T use AI in their interactions with them. The transparency that labeling would reveal might cause shoppers to turn away from your products and brand and impact your results.

California is enacting a similar law called the California AI Transparency Act (SB 942) that puts watermarking rules into effect on August 2, 2026. The rule requires an “AI watermark” on AI generated content and fines are similarly going to be $5,000 per offense. If you sell in California or have customers in California, you will likely meet the thresholds for the labels.

So what can you do about these laws?

1. Focus your AI energy on your product only imagery using soona’s AI studio which blends real photography with AI.
2. Work with real, affordable models from soona or UGC creators to avoid having to label the content with AI.
3. Invest in quality product photography now for any of your best selling products that may be using AI today so you have a plan to avoid labels and fines.

Want to learn more about how to start preparing for the June implementation of these rules? Talk to one of our experts on our crew.

So what can you do about these laws?

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