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China drafts rules for AI avatars, deepfake consent
China’s cyberspace regulator issued draft rules in April for AI “digital humans,” requiring labels and consent for copied likenesses as it tries to limit risks to children, curb scams, and tighten control of a fast-growing market.
The proposals, open for public comment until early May, would ban deepfake clones built from personal data without permission and prohibit content that threatens national security or social stability.
The debate widened after Super Brain, a Chinese firm that creates AI avatars of dead people, made a video avatar that an elderly woman believed was her late son, while Liaoning resident Zhang Xinyu said she uses a version of her dead father.
The industry was worth 4.1 billion yuan (US$601 million) in 2024, according to Xinhua, and breaches could draw fines of 10,000 yuan (US$1,500) to 200,000 yuan (US$29,000).
🔗 Source: The Economic Times
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Implications, context, and why it matters.
The rules cover a fast-growing business with disputed size estimates
- China’s rules cover AI avatar services used to recreate dead relatives, sell products online, and handle other commercial work 1.
- Market estimates vary. One figure put the sector at 4.1 billion yuan (US$601 million) in 2024 1. iiMedia, a Chinese market research firm, estimated China’s virtual human market topped 333.5 billion yuan (US$48.9 billion) in 2023 2.
- Companies say AI hosts can move products. Brother said its AI avatar sold US$2,500 in printers in its first two hours online. The company also said livestream sales rose 30% after it switched to AI avatars 3.
- Baidu said AI avatars of livestreamer Luo Yonghao and co-host Xiao Mu brought in 55 million yuan, or US$7.65 million, during a session that ran for more than six hours on Youxuan. The stream drew more than 13 million views, said Baidu 4.
China’s approach may shape wider rules for digital identity
- A forecast put the global market for AI-powered digital humans at about US$223.2 billion by 2035. North America holds the largest regional share today 5.
- Chinese draft rules require explicit consent to use a person’s likeness and clear labels for digital human content. Similar ideas appear in the European Union’s AI Act and some US state laws on synthetic media, voice rights, and likeness rights 67.
- The draft also assigns duties to service providers and other firms in the supply chain. That could lead multinational technology vendors to use similar compliance practices across markets, though the text names no companies 7.
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