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Watermarking Without Standards Is Not AI Governance
Alexander Nemecek, Yuzhou Jiang, Erman Ayday
https://arxiv.org/abs/2505.23814 https://

Watermarking Without Standards Is Not AI Governance
Watermarking has emerged as a leading technical proposal for attributing generative AI content and is increasingly cited in global governance frameworks. This paper argues that current implementations risk serving as symbolic compliance rather than delivering effective oversight. We identify a growing gap between regulatory expectations and the technical limitations of existing watermarking schemes. Through analysis of policy proposals and industry practices, we show how incentive structures di…