Do I label an AI cartoon or fantasy clip on YouTube?

Usually no. YouTube's GenAI disclosure page says creators do not need to disclose non-realistic content made with AI, and it lists three examples: someone riding a unicorn through a fantastical world, green screen used to depict someone floating in space, and an AI-generated or altered animation of a missile in a fully animated video. The test is realism, not whether a model made the pixels.

There are two traps. Realistic scenes inside a cartoon frame still count, and AI music that is the main focus of the video is on the disclose list regardless of the visuals. A stylized clip that a viewer could mistake for real footage is a realistic clip.

Realistic or not: the page's own contrast

The same page pairs each exempt example with a disclose example. Keep the pairs side by side when you review a generated clip.

What YouTube may still label

Answering No does not stop YouTube from labeling. The page says YouTube may apply a label automatically to content made with its own GenAI tools, content that carries C2PA metadata, and content its systems detect as AI generated or altered. If you choose Yes, a label in the player may appear for photorealistic content, and a label in the expanded description may appear for non-photorealistic or animated content.

Make a clearly stylized clip with Sume

If you want to stay on the non-realistic side, steer the generation toward obvious illustration instead of photography. With Sume video generation the prompt is yours; the API does not add a realism switch, so the check is on you after the job returns. Pull still frames with video inspect (it returns stills as image artifacts) and look at them cold: would a stranger call this footage?

Steps

• Generate the clip and sample stills with video inspect.
• Ask of each still: could a viewer mistake this for something that happened?
• If it is obviously a cartoon, answer No under 'AI use' in YouTube Studio.
• If a realistic shot slipped in, or you used generated music as the focus, answer Yes.
• Re-check the expanded description after publishing to see whether YouTube added its own label.

Caveat

This is YouTube's reading as published on its help page today, and the page calls its own list non-exhaustive. If your clip includes a real person's face or voice, move to the realistic column first.