AI Video Ethics and Regulation: A Guide for Brands & Marketers
The 'uncanny valley', that awkward space where AI looks almost, but not quite, human, is rapidly narrowing. As pixels become more persuasive, the stakes for brands are rising; the closer we get to perfect realism, the more we must prioritise transparency and compliance.
I recently attended a webinar titled "Regulating AI Video in the Advertising Ecosystem," hosted by Clairva.ai and moderated by its co-founder, Sunil Nair. The panel brought together leading figures, including Martin Bertilsson (CEO of Multipole, former Google) and Ashish Chandra (Chief Legal & Risk Officer at Junglee Games).
“Disclaimer: Just so that I am clear right up front, this is not a sponsored post, but since the company hosted the webinar, I thought I should examine more closely what they do. You can see my explanation at the bottom section of the post, their business and their role in this AI video space.”
Moving along, the discussion was a wake-up call for senior marketing and compliance teams: GenAI is no longer a "future" problem; it is a "right now" reality.
While the panellists laid out the framework for this new era, listening to their debate sparked several realisations for me regarding where the industry is truly headed. What follows is a set of core pillars of my evolving point of view on AI in video that began to take shape as I listened to the conversation.
1. The Speed Gap: Creators vs. Corporations
There is a widening chasm in the AI space. Consumers and influencers are moving at "the speed of social," adopting GenAI tools to churn out high-quality video daily. They operate in a "fail fast" environment where the risk of a copyright strike is a minor setback. In contrast, enterprise brands are moving at "the speed of legal." While potential litigation and brand safety concerns paralyse large companies, they are losing the attention war to smaller, more agile creators. The takeaway? Brands cannot wait for perfect regulation before starting to experiment; they must build their own internal "sandbox" for AI experimentation now.
2. Strategy vs. Production: Where AI Actually Lives
A common misconception is that AI is here to replace the "Creative Director." There is a crucial distinction in the workflow:
Content Strategy & Creative Direction: These remain deeply human. AI lacks "intent" and the ability to understand nuanced brand heritage.
Content Production: This is where AI is a powerhouse.
AI is the ultimate bridge between a storyboard and a finished asset. It excels at versioning, taking one master creative and instantly adapting it for 15 different social formats, languages, or regional regulations. It’s not about replacing the idea; it’s about liberating the concept from the manual labour of execution.
3. The Legal Minefield: IP Rights vs. Licensing
One of the most valuable conversations around AI content for Brands is the legal protections. As a marketer, you must know the difference, and this is how I understand it.
Licensing Rights: This is about "permission." If you use an AI tool that was trained on a closed loop of licensed data, you have the right to use that video in your ads without fear of a lawsuit.
IP (Intellectual Property) Rights: This is about "ownership." Currently, in many jurisdictions (including the US), AI-generated content without significant human intervention cannot be copyrighted.
The Risk: If your entire campaign is 100% AI-generated, you might not legally "own" it, meaning competitors could theoretically use your assets. This is why a hybrid approach, incorporating human-made elements, is a legal necessity rather than a creative choice.
4. The Human-Centric Hybrid: Lessons from Legacy Brands
We’ve seen recent AI plays from giants like Coca-Cola and McDonald’s. Some were praised for their dreamlike aesthetics; others were criticised for feeling "soulless."
From my perspective, the lesson is that the "Heart" must be human. The most successful AI campaigns use the technology for environmental effects, background textures, or rapid prototyping, but keep real people at the centre. When a legacy brand loses the human face, it loses the "brand equity" it spent decades building.
The Winning Formula: Human Creativity + Human Characters + AI Production Power + Pre-production A/B Testing = Compliant, Authentic Advertising.
My Final Thoughts
The transition to AI video is inevitable, but it doesn't have to be reckless. By focusing on production efficiency rather than replacement strategy and maintaining a human-centric hybrid model, brands can navigate regulatory uncertainty with confidence.
Since Clairva.ai hosted the webinar, I wanted to examine their role in the AI video space in Asia after reviewing their website and following up with their team. I believe the Clairva.ai Edge is that they bring in regional and cultural nuances that some large LLMs may not have, or that it requires a considerable amount of prompting to get to where you want your output to be. This is where generic AI tools often fall short for global brands. This is where Clairva.ai believes it has a role. Most LLMs and video models are Western-centric, usually overlooking the cultural nuances, regional aesthetics, and specific regulatory hurdles of Asian markets. They appear to be injecting and integrating regional datasets to ensure that a video doesn't merely look "real"; it seems "local." For brands operating across diverse geographies, this localised intelligence is the difference between a campaign that resonates and one that feels "uncanny" or tone-deaf.
Adopt AI with Confidence and Clarity. Are you struggling to build a business case for AI or unsure about governance and compliance? AIdeate Solutions guides organisations through practical, responsible AI adoption. We help you move beyond the hype to implement workflows that create real value.
