AI influencers — fictional digital characters powered by generative AI, computer graphics, and scripted personas that amass social media followings and enter into brand endorsement deals — are a rapidly growing phenomenon in India. India’s first AI influencer ‘Kyra’ appeared in 2023, and the space has since expanded rapidly. The question of whether AI influencers are legal in India, what rules apply to them, and who bears legal responsibility for their content is increasingly pressing for brands, agencies, and consumers.
The Legal Status: Not Banned, But Regulated
AI influencers are not explicitly illegal in India. No statute specifically prohibits the creation or use of virtual or AI-generated personas for commercial purposes. However, AI influencers and their content are subject to the same advertising and consumer protection laws as human influencers, with an additional mandatory requirement: disclosure of their non-human, virtual nature.
The Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI), India’s primary self-regulatory body for advertising, released guidelines in 2021 that specifically addressed virtual influencers. ASCI defines a virtual influencer as ‘fictional, computer-generated people or avatars who have the realistic characteristics, features, and personalities of humans, and behave in a similar manner as influencers.’ The ASCI guidelines state that a virtual influencer must additionally disclose to consumers that they are not interacting with a real human being. This disclosure must be upfront and prominent.
ASCI Guidelines: Disclosure Requirements
The ASCI’s Influencer Advertising in Digital Media guidelines (2021, updated periodically) apply to all influencer advertising including virtual and AI influencers. The key requirements applicable to AI influencers are: mandatory disclosure of the virtual/AI nature of the influencer using clear labels (such as ‘Virtual Person,’ ‘AI,’ or ‘Computer-Generated’); disclosure of all paid partnerships using approved labels (#ad, #sponsored, #collab only — not vague alternatives); disclosure of material connections between the brand and the influencer/creator; for video content, disclosure labels must remain visible for at least 3 seconds and must appear at the beginning for videos over 2 minutes; and for branded AI content, both the brand and the content creator/company operating the AI influencer bear responsibility for compliance.
ASCI enforcement: ASCI reviews complaints from consumers and industry members. It can direct non-compliant content to be modified or removed. ASCI maintains a list of non-compliant brands and influencers on its website. While ASCI guidelines are technically self-regulatory (not backed by direct statutory enforcement), non-compliance also triggers Consumer Protection Act liability.
Consumer Protection Act, 2019: Binding Legal Obligation
The Consumer Protection Act, 2019 (CPA) and the Central Consumer Protection Authority’s (CCPA) Guidelines for Prevention of Misleading Advertisements and Endorsements, 2022, create binding legal obligations for all influencer advertising including AI-generated content. Under the CPA, misleading advertisements — including those that create false impressions about a product or service — attract penalties of up to Rs 10 lakh for a first offence and Rs 50 lakh for repeat offences.
An AI influencer appearing to give a ‘personal testimonial’ about using or benefiting from a product they obviously cannot use (because they are not real) is inherently deceptive. The FTC in the USA has explicitly warned that virtual influencers cannot give personal testimonials. India’s CCPA has taken a similar position, and brands using AI influencers for endorsements must ensure that all claims are substantiated and the virtual nature is clearly disclosed to consumers.
Under the CCPA guidelines, both the brand (advertiser) and the platform (publisher) share responsibility for the misleading advertisement. If an AI influencer’s brand deal creates a false impression of human experience or personal use, both the brand and the company operating the AI persona can face CCPA action.
IT Rules 2026: AI Labelling and Deepfake Rules
The IT (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Amendment Rules, 2026, which came into force in February 2026, include new provisions relevant to AI-generated content. These rules require platforms to label all AI-generated or AI-significantly-edited content, including virtual influencer content. Content created using generative AI must carry a visible label. Failure to label constitutes a violation, and platforms that knowingly host unlabelled AI content can lose their Section 79 IT Act safe harbour protection.
These IT Rules also address deepfake content — AI-manipulated videos of real people. If an AI influencer is created using the likeness of a real identifiable person without their consent, this can constitute a deepfake violation under the IT Rules and IT Act Section 66E, attracting criminal liability.
Intellectual Property and Liability Questions
Who owns the copyright in an AI influencer’s posts and images? Under the Copyright Act, 1957, copyright vests in the author, defined as a human being. AI-generated content does not automatically attract copyright protection in India unless a human author’s creative contribution can be identified. The company or individual who designs, scripts, and manages the AI influencer likely owns the copyright as the human creative force behind it. This is an evolving area where DPIIT (Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade) has been examining AI and copyright in its Working Paper on Generative AI (September 2025).
Liability for the AI influencer’s content rests entirely with the company or individuals operating it — the AI persona itself cannot be sued or prosecuted. If an AI influencer makes false health claims, promotes illegal products, or engages in defamatory speech, the company behind it faces legal liability under the CPA, IT Act, and BNS as applicable.
Final Thought
AI influencers are legal in India but are subject to robust disclosure requirements, consumer protection laws, IT Rules 2026, and ASCI guidelines. The mandatory, prominent disclosure that the influencer is an AI or virtual entity — not a real human — is non-negotiable. Brands using AI influencers for product endorsements must ensure all advertising claims are substantiated, the virtual nature is clearly disclosed, and all content complies with ASCI guidelines and the Consumer Protection Act. As AI influencers grow in India’s creator economy, compliance, transparency, and ethical representation will separate legitimate players from those inviting regulatory action.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Q1. Does an AI influencer’s paid promotion need to carry a disclosure label?
A: Yes, absolutely. ASCI guidelines require all influencer advertising — including by virtual and AI influencers — to carry clear disclosure labels using only approved tags: #ad, #sponsored, or #collab. In addition, a label disclosing the virtual/AI nature of the influencer (such as ‘Virtual Person’ or ‘AI’) must be upfront and prominent. This double disclosure — of the commercial relationship and the non-human nature — is mandatory for all AI influencer content involving paid promotion.
Q2. Can an AI influencer legally give a product testimonial in India?
A: An AI influencer can feature in advertising, but must not give a ‘personal’ testimonial implying first-hand human experience of the product. The CCPA guidelines require that endorsements be based on genuine experience or use. An AI persona cannot genuinely use skincare products, eat food, or experience travel. Any testimonial language that implies personal use is deceptive and violates consumer protection law. Brands should frame AI influencer content as demonstrations or entertainment rather than personal experience endorsements.
Q3. Who is legally responsible for an AI influencer’s problematic content?
A: The company, brand, or individuals who operate, script, manage, and deploy the AI influencer bear full legal responsibility for its content. The AI persona itself cannot be held liable. If the AI influencer publishes false claims, promotes illegal products, makes defamatory statements, or violates IT Act provisions, the human operators face liability under the Consumer Protection Act, BNS, and IT Act as applicable. Both the content creator (the AI operator) and the brand that commissions the content can be liable.
Q4. Is it legal to create an AI influencer using a real person’s likeness without permission?
A: No. Creating an AI influencer that uses the recognisable likeness, face, or voice of a real person without their consent violates: their right to publicity (using their image commercially without consent); IT Act Section 66E if intimate or private images are involved; IT Rules 2026 deepfake provisions if the AI-generated likeness is of a real identifiable person; and the law of passing off if consumers are misled about endorsement. High-profile personality right cases in India have awarded significant damages for unauthorised commercial use of likeness.
Q5. What happens to an AI influencer’s brand deals if ASCI finds them non-compliant?
A: ASCI can direct the influencer (or the company operating them) and the brand to modify or remove the non-compliant content. Persistent non-compliance can result in ASCI publishing the brand and influencer on its non-compliant list, damaging reputation. Simultaneously, CCPA can initiate action under the Consumer Protection Act, imposing fines of up to Rs 10 lakh for misleading advertising. For systematic violations, CCPA can also issue injunctions prohibiting specific advertising claims or campaigns.
