California enacts SB 1050, requiring disclosure of AI-generated ad performers

California enacted Senate Bill 1050, which requires explicit disclosure on any video or audio advertisement that uses an AI-generated performer to sell a product or service.

Governor Gavin Newsom signed the bill on September 16, 2026, at the Los Angeles headquarters of the bill's sponsor, with the bill's author present.

What it is

SB 1050 was authored by Senator Angelique Ashby and signed by Governor Newsom to target advertisements that substitute AI-generated performers for human talent.

The bill builds on earlier California worker protections that help actors and performers protect their digital likenesses in audio and visual productions.

It is one part of a wider 2026 California package whose AI measures address companion and customer service chatbots, AI transparency and provenance data, employment and workplace surveillance, synthetic performers and digital replicas, and state oversight of independent AI auditors.

What it requires

The law defines a synthetic performer as an AI-created digital figure, voice, or representation that often appears so realistic that it is difficult to distinguish whether it is AI or an actual person, and requires that such figures be disclosed as synthetic in advertising.

The bill also prohibits the continued use of any advertisement found to be in violation of the law.

Alongside SB 1050, the broader 2026 package updates the California AI Transparency Act, adds customer service chatbot disclosures, and adds synthetic performer and digital replica requirements.

What security leaders should do

Marketing, legal, and privacy teams should inventory every advertisement, demo video, or voice recording that uses AI-generated or AI-altered performers so each one can be checked for the required disclosure before publication. Procurement and vendor-management teams should confirm that agencies and ad-tech vendors producing AI-generated advertising content can supply documentation of consent and disclosure practices, since the law applies to any video or audio advertisement using an AI-generated performer rather than only in-house productions. Because the law sits inside a wider package covering synthetic performers, digital replicas, and companion chatbot disclosures, security and compliance leaders should coordinate a single AI-content review workflow rather than building separate processes for each new California measure. Teams should also plan to pull or correct any advertisement flagged as noncompliant quickly, given the law's prohibition on continued use of violating ads.