The EU AI Act introduces new transparency requirements for AI-generated content, taking effect on 2 August 2026. If your organization publishes visual content in the EU, these rules affect how you label and export your assets. This article explains what the requirements are and how Kontainer's EU AI/C2PA module helps you stay compliant.
Note: This feature might be available as a paid add-on, depending on your Kontainer subscription plan. See the pricing overview for more information.
Note: These requirements apply to content published in the EU. This article is provided for general guidance and is not legal advice — please consult your legal team regarding your specific obligations.
What the EU AI Act requires
The transparency obligations are set out in Article 50 of the EU AI Act (Regulation (EU) 2024/1689). In short, AI-generated and AI-manipulated content must be identifiable — both by machines (through embedded, machine-readable marking) and, in certain cases, by people (through a visible label).
The rules distinguish between three types of content:
| Content type | Visible AI label on image | C2PA watermark (machine-readable) |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Fully AI-generated | Required | Required |
| 2. Partially AI-generated | Required | Required |
| 3. AI-manipulated (e.g., color adjustments) | Not required | Required |
What is C2PA? C2PA (Coalition for Content Provenance and Authenticity) is an invisible, machine-readable watermark embedded in the file — similar to metadata — that certifies how the content was created. It does not change how your image looks.
Official EU resources
- Article 50 – Transparency obligations (EU AI Act Service Desk, European Commission)
- Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 – full legal text on EUR-Lex
- The AI Act – overview (European Commission, Shaping Europe's Digital Future)
- Code of Practice on Transparency of AI-Generated Content (European Commission)
How Kontainer helps
Kontainer supports both requirements through the EU AI/C2PA module:
1. Automatic C2PA watermarking
Configure your settings once, and Kontainer embeds the C2PA watermark automatically via your download templates. Every file exported through those templates carries the machine-readable provenance information required by the AI Act — no manual steps needed.
2. Visible AI icon on images
For fully or partially AI-generated content, you can add a visible AI label directly on the image. The icon is preserved on every export — regardless of output format, cropping, or resizing — so your content stays compliant across all channels.
3. AI detection & tagging
A new info panel on each asset shows whether it is AI-generated. If Kontainer hasn't detected this automatically, you can set the AI status manually, either on a single file or in bulk across many files at once. This makes it easy to keep track of which assets need labelling before publication.
Getting started
The EU AI/C2PA module is activated per account. To have it enabled, please contact our support team or your Kontainer representative. Once the module is active on your account, you can configure everything directly in the Kontainer interface as described below.
Step 1: Set Content Credentials on your files
Every file in Kontainer has a Content Credentials section in its info panel, showing how the file was created and whether it is AI-generated.
If an image was generated with a tool such as ChatGPT, Adobe Firefly, or another application that embeds C2PA Content Credentials, Kontainer automatically detects this on upload and displays the corresponding information — including which tool created the file, when it was created, and its AI status.
If a file does not carry Content Credentials, you can set the AI status manually. Open the file, expand the Content Credentials section in the info panel, and choose one of the following from the AI status dropdown:
- None — the file is not AI-generated or AI-manipulated.
- Generated — the file is fully or partially AI-generated. These files require both a visible AI label and machine-readable C2PA marking.
- Manipulated — the file has been modified by AI (for example AI retouching or colour adjustments). These files require machine-readable C2PA marking, but no visible label.
Tip: The AI status determines how the file is treated on download — for example, whether a visible AI marker is applied. Make sure your AI-generated assets are correctly tagged before they are shared or published.
You don't need to tag files one at a time. To update the AI status on many files in one action, select the files in the grid or list view — for example everything in a folder returned by a search — and use the bulk-edit option to set the AI status for all of them at once. This is the fastest way to bring a whole batch of assets up to date before a release or a bulk export.
Filtering files by AI status in search
You can also use search to find files by their AI status instead of opening them one by one. Add an AI status filter to your search — for example Generated or Modified — to instantly pull up every file with that status. This makes it easy to audit your library for anything that still needs a visible label or C2PA marking before it is shared or published.
Step 2: Configure your account-wide C2PA settings
Go to Settings > Configuration > C2PA to control how Kontainer signs and labels AI content on download. Here you can configure:
Signing
- Embed C2PA metadata on AI downloads — signs AI-generated or AI-manipulated files with an invisible C2PA manifest when they don't already carry one. This applies to master files and to every rendition, and is the machine-readable marking required by the EU AI Act.
AI watermark
- Apply AI watermark on AI downloads — stamps the selected AI watermark on every download of an AI-generated or AI-manipulated asset, on both the master file and every rendition. Files that already carry C2PA are re-signed, so the watermark stays verifiable.
When you use the EU AI label icon, Kontainer automatically labels fully or partially generated files "AI GENERATED" and modified files "AI MODIFIED".
AI watermark icon, size and position
You can choose which icon is stamped on AI downloads:
- Content Credentials (CR) — the icon recommended by the C2PA initiative.
- EU AI label — the European Commission's official mark for AI-generated content.
- Your own icon — upload a custom marker of your choice.
Use the Watermark size setting to control how large the icon appears, and the Watermark position grid to choose where on the image it should sit, for example in a corner, along an edge, or in the centre. The preview shows you where the watermark will appear. Click Save to apply your settings.
Step 3: Setting in download template
You can also control C2PA behaviour for individual renditions. Go to Settings > Download options, edit a download template, and scroll to the C2PA / Content Credentials section. Here you can:
- Strip C2PA / Content Credentials from this download — remove provenance data from files exported via this template.
- Apply the AI watermark to this rendition — stamp the visible AI watermark on this specific rendition whenever the asset is AI-generated or AI-manipulated.
This gives you full control over which export formats carry provenance data and visible labelling — for example, applying the watermark on social media renditions while keeping internal working files unmarked.
The AI-watermarking features are available as an add-on.