TikTok is introducing a new feature that allows them to lessen the quantity of artificial intelligence-produced media appearing in their timelines. This initiative comes as the company revealed that it currently hosts over 1 bn content made with AI.
Testing and Rollout
The new functionality is in a pilot phase over the following weeks before a global rollout. This development comes amid a surge in AI content, spurred by recent content generation software.
The Broader AI Trend
It has been noted that almost one in 10 of the fastest-growing channels on a competing service primarily display AI-generated videos. A large amount of this output is classified as mass-produced AI material, a phrase for substandard, bulk-generated content that is typically absurd or surreal.
“We know from our community that a lot of users enjoy content created using AI tools, from AI artwork to educational videos, and we intend to give people the option to adjust the amount of that, depending on their own likes,” stated a company executive.
Volume and Proportions
TikTok disclosed that there are presently 1.3 billion videos on its app identified as AI-generated. Collectively, more than 100 million videos are uploaded to the platform each day, making AI content a relatively small percentage of its complete catalog.
User Control Features
Viewers will be in a position to reduce or increase the volume of artificial media they see by accessing the “manage topic” setting in the application and selecting the AI content topic. Further subjects that can already be modified under the filter include current affairs, clothing, beauty, and dance.
AI Disclosure Rules
The platform’s policies mandate users to label “realistic” artificially created content, and it bans harmful fake videos of well-known individuals or critical incidents. Any believable AI video that is not labeled can be deleted under its community policies.
Furthermore, the service will henceforth apply an “AI-made” label to content produced via its proprietary AI systems, or flagged by an cross-platform project for recognizing artificial media. This measure is designed to help prevent users from attempting to evade the disclosure requirement.
Responsible AI Funding
The platform is furthermore introducing a $2 million AI literacy fund for professionals and institutions to create informative material about using AI responsibly. This program will support non-profit groups dedicated to teaching computer science.
Platform Protection
The video-sharing app has justified its moderation strategy, during discussion over intentions to lay off hundreds of safety staff in the UK. It is expected to eliminate hundreds of positions in its content moderation department in its British office, with worker representatives and internet security professionals expressing worry that people are being substituted by machine-led review.
A senior executive clarified that staff-based oversight would continue to be important, but automated tools can safeguard staff by removing the most graphic content before it gets reviewed by staff. TikTok reported a significant reduction in disturbing and violent content handled by human moderators over the previous year due to the use of its AI tools.
We believe it is crucial to balance staff and AI to ensure user safety,” she said. “We’ll have staff as involved in the system, but we also think it’s very important to minimize viewing of unsafe media as swiftly, which is why a lot of the machine support is making a difference operate efficiently.”
