The Reported Engagement with AI Level (REAL) Rating: A Framework for Disclosing Human-AI Collaboration

Generative artificial intelligence has become increasingly incorporated into digital media and more generally into production workflows with which the public frequently interacts. Current provenance standards and disclosure methods frequently rely on binary categorizations, differentiating only between entirely human-authored and AI-generated content, or depend on technical watermarking that lacks user-facing clarity. However, there are very different risks and outcomes depending on the different uses of AI in the creation and consumption of end products. Therefore, we propose the Reported Engagement with AI Level (REAL) Rating framework which addresses these concerns by introducing a six-tier scale (Levels 0-5) that discloses the extent of AI involvement in both product creation and user experience. This paper details the structural methodology of the REAL Rating system and the specifics of its application across text, image, audio, video, and software products.