If your product photography or A+ Content uses AI-generated models instead of real people, Amazon added a compliance step you need to know about. Since late July, Amazon now requires sellers to disclose when an image or video contains a photorealistic AI-generated person, and it’s enforced through metadata, not a checkbox in Seller Central.
The change traces back to a New York law requiring disclosure when ads use “synthetic performers” in place of real people. Amazon rolled the rule out globally across all its stores rather than just for New York-facing listings, so it applies no matter where you sell.
What Needs the Tag
The requirement covers:
- Product images with AI-generated people
- Lifestyle images featuring synthetic performers
- Product videos with AI-generated individuals
- A+ Content that includes AI-generated people
What’s Exempt
You don’t need to tag:
- Images with only real people, even if AI tools were used to edit them
- Fictional characters from movies, TV, or games
- Content with no people in it
- Non-photorealistic depictions (illustrations, cartoons, stylized renders)
How to Add the Tag
1. Use an IPTC-compatible metadata editor
You’ll add the tag before the file ever reaches Seller Central, so this happens in your image or video production tool, not on Amazon’s platform.
2. Add the keyword to the right field
The exact string is contains-synthetic-performer, added to the dc:subject (XMP) field of the image or video file.
3. Upload as normal
Once the metadata is attached, Amazon reads it automatically and displays a customer-facing indicator that the image includes AI-generated people.
Important note: metadata doesn’t always survive the production pipeline. Export tools, compression, and some asset management systems strip embedded XMP data by default. If you’re generating creative through an agency or a bulk-editing tool, confirm the tag actually makes it into the final file before it’s uploaded, not just when it’s first created.
What This Means for Sellers
If you’re using AI-generated creative anywhere in your catalog, particularly through Amazon’s own Creative Agent or Sponsored Brands AI tools, this is now a step in your production checklist, not an optional nicety. Audit your current AI creative for qualifying images, and build the metadata check into whatever workflow produces your final upload files. Getting caught without it isn’t just a compliance risk, it’s a missed chance to build trust with the growing share of shoppers who notice when a product photo doesn’t look quite real.
