Podcast and video AI disclosure checklistbefore you publish an episode or a video

Why the rules differ, and why that came up in search in November 2026

On 12 November 2026 we opened two official help pages side by side. Apple Podcasts content guideline 1.11 says that creators using AI to generate audio or video content, including synthetic voices, AI-generated hosts or on-screen personas, or AI-synthesized replicas of real individuals, must prominently disclose this to audiences in the content and metadata for each episode and show. Guideline 1.12 separately says creators must not use AI to mislead, including by fabricating news or manipulating clips to present false narratives. Apple's page did not display a last-updated date on the copy we saved.

YouTube's help page on disclosing GenAI content, read the same evening, requires creators to disclose AI-generated or altered content that seems realistic, using the AI use setting at upload. The current list includes making a real person appear to say or do something they did not, altering footage of a real event or place, generating a realistic scene that did not occur, and creating music that is the main focus of the video. The same page lists cloning one's own voice to create voice-overs or dubs among the uses that do not need to be disclosed, along with production assistance such as outlines, captions and audio repair. YouTube may also apply a label automatically. The page said that disclosing AI content alone will not limit a video's audience or its eligibility to earn money, and that consistent non-disclosure may lead to a manual label, removal, or a Partner Program suspension.

Those two official rule-sets are not the same. A YouTube setting does not, on its own, satisfy Apple's "in the content and metadata" requirement. An own-voice clone can be treated differently on each platform. This page does not choose a side. It asks you to read the current rules for each place you will publish.

Measured demand sits mainly in search. Autocomplete checked on 12 November 2026, about 8:39 PM Australia/Brisbane, returned strong suggestion clusters for "youtube ai disclosure", "youtube altered or synthetic content", "youtube ai content label", "podcast ai voice" and "podcast voice clone". The phrase "apple podcasts ai disclosure" itself returned no suggestions. The official Apple rule is still used because it is the current guideline on Apple's own page. An 9 October 2026 Forbes column on AI in podcasting sits just outside this demand window and is not the hook.

The checks are written for the next time a podcaster or a video creator is about to publish, on any platform. Always follow the current help pages that apply to that upload. This page is not a substitute for them, and it is distinct from TimeBinder's YouTube Music label decoder, which is about labels on music tracks.

Sources: the Apple Podcasts content guidelines, and YouTube Help on disclosing GenAI content, both read on 12 November 2026.

If an episode or video is one you may need to stand behind later

Before you publish:

1. Read the current rules for each platform you will use, and keep a dated copy of the exact file you will upload and of the wording you will disclose.
2. Make a TimeBind of each exact file you already hold. The fingerprint is made in your browser and the file stays on your device. You can later download a Proof of Time Certificate.
3. Store the uploaded file, the disclosure wording, any platform confirmation and the certificate together.

A TimeBind shows the exact file existed no later than the recorded time and still matches. It is not a platform decision, and it is not a finding that a disclosure was sufficient.

What a TimeBind shows, and what it does not. It shows that an exact file existed no later than a recorded time and that a copy shown later still matches its fingerprint. It does not show who made the file, who owns it, that its contents are true, or whether AI was used to make or edit it. This is general information, not legal advice.