Guides · Article 50 · EU AI Act
AI disclosure: does B2B vs B2C change Article 50?
A frequent question is whether Article 50's transparency duties are really a B2C concern — something for consumer apps, not for products sold business-to-business. It is a reasonable question, but the answer is not a clean B2B exemption. This guide explains how the wording works and why the distinction is fact-specific. It is informational only, not legal advice, and does not determine whether the Act applies to your product.
Article 50 speaks of 'natural persons', not consumers
The operative language matters. Article 50(1) addresses AI systems intended to interact directly with 'natural persons'; Article 50(3) requires informing the 'natural persons exposed' to certain systems; Article 50(5) requires the information to reach 'the natural persons concerned' (Regulation (EU) 2024/1689). The text is framed around natural persons, not around whether a sale is labelled B2B or B2C. In a business context, the people actually using a chatbot or exposed to a system are still natural persons — an employee of your business customer, for example. So a B2B label does not, by itself, remove those individuals from the wording.
Why it is fact-specific, not a blanket exemption
None of this means B2B and B2C are identical for every purpose. Roles can differ — in a B2B sale your customer may be the deployer while you are the provider — and who bears which duty, and whether the 'obvious' exception reads differently for a professional audience, can turn on the facts. What is not safe is treating 'we're B2B' as an automatic exemption from Article 50. The reliable framing is: identify the natural persons who interact with or are exposed to each system, work out your role for that system, and confirm with qualified counsel how the duties fall.
Common questions
Is a B2B product exempt from Article 50 disclosure?
Not as a blanket rule. Article 50 is framed around 'natural persons', and business contexts still involve natural persons — such as your customer's employees using the system. Whether and how the duties apply, and who holds them, is fact-specific. Confirm with qualified counsel rather than assuming a B2B exemption.
See what may apply to your business
Answer seven quick questions for an automated, informational indication of which Article 50 obligations appear likely to apply — free, and not legal advice.