Tech

OpenAI will watermark ChatGPT outputs by default—but only in the EU

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Briefings

OpenAI announced it will automatically watermark ChatGPT outputs in the EU to comply with the EU AI Act, effective August 2026. The watermark uses proprietary 'textGrain' patterns that are invisible to humans but detectable by specialized tools. Access to the detector is restricted to a limited number of researchers and organizations, with a request-for-approval process for others. Outside the EU, the feature is currently disabled by default.

Key points

• OpenAI will automatically watermark ChatGPT outputs in the European Union starting August 2026 to comply with the EU AI Act.
• The watermark uses proprietary 'textGrain' patterns that are invisible to humans but detectable by specialized tools.

Context

The EU AI Act requires marking AI-generated content to ensure detectability, though no completely effective method exists. OpenAI's method is proprietary and works similarly to past LLM watermarking tools, though it is less reliable than existing standards like SynthID.

Limitations

Watermarking is currently restricted to the EU; outside regions, the feature is disabled by default. Access to the detector is limited to a small number of researchers and organizations, with a request-for-approval process for others. The company has not publicly disclosed the specific technical details of the 'textGrain' method.

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