TikTok’s new guidelines add subtle changes for LIVE creators, AI content, and more

TikTok is preparing an update to its Community Guidelines, which dictate the rules for participating on the social video platform as well as what standards the company uses to determine the videos that make it onto its For You feed. While the update largely rewrites the original text for simplicity’s sake, there are a few items that jump out in the new revision — notably how TikTok prioritizes its marketplace, how deeply it personalizes the experience per user, and a small change to the type of AI-generated content that’s permitted.

Today, social media companies have to comply with a range of regulations globally, like the U.K.’s Online Safety Act (OSA), the EU’s Digital Services Act (DSA), and the U.S.’s TAKE IT DOWN Act, which in part has led to policy revisions on some platforms, as with yesterday’s update to Bluesky.

TikTok’s changes, which go live on September 13, 2025, are not as substantial, as it appears the company was often just rewriting text for clarity.

However, one section that saw several additions in the updated guidelines covers the rules for TikTok LIVE creators.

The company warns creators they’re responsible for anything that happens on their live session, even if it involves third-party tools, like real-time translation or voice-to-text tools to read out viewers’ comments. TikTok advises creators to monitor those tools to make sure they’re not violating the rules through these third-party services.

Another notable addition to this section introduces new guidelines for commercial content.

TikTok stresses that commercial content must be disclosed. It also directly states that it will reduce the visibility of content that directs users to “purchase products off-platform in markets where TikTok Shop is available.”

The company also says it’s customizing users’ search results.

While the prior version of the guidelines said TikTok provided “search suggestions” that were relevant to the user, the new guidelines say both “search results and recommendations may look different for everyone.” The guidelines explain that TikTok uses information like your past searches and what you’ve watched to make the search results more relevant.

The updated rules reveal that comments are personalized, too.

TikTok says comments are being sorted based on signals like past replies, likes, and reports. Again, this means the comment section will look different from user to user.

The section on AI content has not changed dramatically, though the language here has become less verbose in parts when describing what sort of deepfake content is not allowed. TikTok previously banned content that “shares or shows fake authoritative sources or crisis events, or falsely shows public figures in certain contexts,” it said. “This includes being bullied, making an endorsement, or being endorsed.”

That’s now been replaced with language that says TikTok doesn’t allow content “that’s misleading about matters of public importance or harmful to individuals.”

It’s interesting to note the language referencing AI endorsements was removed. (Perhaps TikTok is paving the way for celebrity-approved, AI-generated endorsements?)

In some cases, the language in the guidelines has been simplified, such as in the case of the For You feed (FYF) Eligibility Standards section, which no longer has a long list of what’s considered FYF ineligible content. Instead, details about the ineligible content are spread throughout the many different sections of the updated Community Guidelines, which makes it less helpful to reference since it’s no longer all in one place.

It’s also worth noting that TikTok changed the language explaining the reason why it engages in content moderation.

Before, the company said the process kept the platform “safe, trustworthy, and vibrant.” Now it describes content moderation as helping TikTok be a “safe, fun, and creative place for everyone.”

It seems “trustworthy” got the ax. Uh-oh.