Origin is unknown
Do not turn silence into a no. Mark unknown and route the question back to the maker or supplier.
Creative operations worksheet
Keep an ad's AI-origin fact attached to the handoff
A flattened file can move from maker to freelancer, approver, and uploader while the fact that AI created or edited part of it stays behind. Use this compact record to carry that fact to the declaration decision.
This worksheet preserves one disclosure-relevant production fact. It is not legal advice, rights clearance, or a complete provenance system.
One asset · five handoffs
Origin record travels with the file
01 Maker
AI edited
Supplier recorded
Attester named
Declaration pending
02 Freelancer
AI edited
Supplier recorded
Attester named
Declaration pending
03 Approver
AI edited
Supplier recorded
Attester named
Declaration pending
04 Declare
AI edited
Supplier recorded
Attester named
Declaration pending
05 Customer
AI edited
Supplier recorded
Attester named
Disclosure shown
Fictional worked example
A maker sends a flattened ad to a freelancer. The generated background fact stays in the maker's head while the file gets a new crop, name, approval, and upload task. The worksheet gives that fact somewhere durable to travel.
Copyable / printable artifact
Carry the record with the asset
Fill the required handshake before the file moves. Add the supporting record when it helps the next owner reconstruct the version, source, review, or exception.
Asset-version handoff record
Carry forward · update only what changed
Required handshake
01
Asset / version
Name the exact file, asset ID, and version this record describes.
02
AI created or edited
Record yes, no, or unknown. Never treat a blank as no.
03
Affected element or region
Name the background, subject, voice, copy, crop extension, or other affected part.
04
Tool / supplier
Name the tool, employee, freelancer, agency, or supplier that created or edited it.
05
Attester
Name the person carrying the statement forward for this version.
06
Declaration status
Choose not reviewed, not required, required, or submitted.
07
Declaration date / owner
If reviewed or submitted, record the date and the person responsible.
08
Next handoff owner
Name the next person who must receive and carry the record.
Declaration status options: not reviewed · not required · required · submitted
Optional supporting record
01
Changes in this pass
Record only what changed during this handoff.
02
Source asset reference
Link the source photo, clip, brief, or prior version when available.
03
Content Credential or embedded signal
Record present, not present, or unknown without treating the signal as the whole handoff.
04
Rights / claims review owner
Name the separate owner for rights, claims, or usage review when needed.
05
Exception / question
State what is unresolved and who must answer before the asset moves.
06
Linked campaign / task
Link the campaign, ticket, review thread, or upload task.
Plain-text handoff
Copy this into the task, asset description, review note, or upload record your team already uses. The format is less important than keeping the known facts attached to the exact version.
Keyboard: focus the template, then use arrow keys or Page Down to read the complete text.
AI Creative-Origin Handoff Required handshake Asset / version: AI created or edited: Affected element or region: Tool / supplier: Attester: Declaration status: [not reviewed / not required / required / submitted] Declaration date / owner: Next handoff owner: Optional supporting record Changes in this pass: Source asset reference: Content Credential or embedded signal: [present / not present / unknown] Rights / claims review owner: Exception / question: Linked campaign / task: Carry forward the known origin facts. Update the version, changes, declaration state, date / owner, and next handoff owner.
Fictional asset journey
What changes, and what must carry forward
- 01
Maker
What changes
A real product photo is extended with a generated awning and counter background, then exported as a flattened image.
Carry forward
AI state, affected background, tool or supplier, maker attestation, declaration status, and next owner.
- 02
Freelancer
What changes
The image is cropped for another placement, its shadows are adjusted, and the returned file gets a new version name.
Carry forward
Every origin field from the maker, plus this pass's edits, the returned version, freelancer attestation, and approver as next owner.
- 03
Brand approval
What changes
The reviewer approves the customer-facing creative while keeping the origin decision separate from brand approval.
Carry forward
The known AI state and affected region, the maker and editor trail, declaration status, approval attester, and uploader as next owner.
- 04
Platform upload
What changes
The uploader reviews the platform control and records the declaration decision for the approved version.
Carry forward
The unchanged origin facts, exact uploaded version, declaration status, date and owner, plus the destination campaign or task.
- 05
Customer-visible disclosure
What changes
The platform can present a short public answer about whether AI created or edited the ad.
Carry forward
Keep the production record with the final asset so the public answer can be traced back to human attestations and the submitted version.
When to stop and ask
A clean export is not a complete answer
Supplier cannot attest
Hold the handoff until the uncertainty and its owner are recorded.
Version mismatch
Reconcile the record with the exact file that will be approved or uploaded.
Affected element is unclear
Ask which part was created or edited instead of relying on a broad AI-used label.
Declaration state is missing
Name who reviews the platform decision and keep the state as not reviewed until they do.
Final uploader does not have the record
Stop before upload and deliver the record with the exact approved asset.
Supporting signals
Platform controls and credentials can help
Treat platform controls and Content Credentials as supporting evidence, not a substitute for the human record across mixed tools, flattened exports, suppliers, and task systems. Neither determines your legal requirements.
Google's July 9 announcement
Google says My Ad Center will add a global “How this ad was made” section, automatically disclose use of Google's generative advertising tools, and provide a control for ads created elsewhere. The announcement does not settle every account, timing, edit-classification, or local-requirement question.
Content Credentials (C2PA)
C2PA describes Content Credentials as an open standard for recording origin and edit history. Credentials and embedded signals can support a record; they do not replace the human handoff across mixed tools, exports, and suppliers.
Keep the artifact connected
Read the source, then connect the broader controls
Read the source article
Follow the five-handoff narrative that this worksheet turns into an operating artifact.
Open resourceFix the brand-asset approval layer
Handle the broader rights, ownership, version, approval, and provenance foundation.
Open resourceAI approval policy template
Define what AI may create, edit, publish, escalate, and never touch.
Open resourceAI Content Creation service
Connect this handoff to a reviewed content and creative-production loop.
Open resourceArtifact first, workflow second
Map one creative workflow
Bring one recently shipped asset. BaristaLabs can help identify where its origin record should travel, who attests at each handoff, and where the declaration decision belongs.