California’s AI transparency law doesn’t solve the first-impression problem

California’s first-of-its-kind AI transparency law requires large AI model providers to embed and preserve key metadata within AI-generated images, video, and audio.

California’s new AI transparency law took effect this week, but it defines “transparency” in a way that may not help many consumers. The law, which passed in 2024, sets up a robust transparency infrastructure for AI-generated content, but it does not guarantee that the real “story” of a piece of content is shown when it matters most: at the user’s first impression.