The news: AI-generated content is changing the rules of TikTok Shop marketing, forcing brands to rethink how to balance authenticity with reach.

The conundrum: Tools like TikTok’s AI Video Maker are making it easier than ever for brands and creators to create shoppable content. But not every brand is on board. SharkNinja warned its affiliates that using AI-generated content to promote its products will result in forfeited commissions, according to a memo obtained by The Wall Street Journal. SharkNinja’s concern is that AI content has the potential to be inauthentic and misleading, chief commercial officer Neil Shah told The Journal, noting that the company wants “real consumers seeing real products being used by real people.”

However, SharkNinja may be fighting a losing battle with rising AI adoption. Three-quarters of creators consider creative AI integral or essential to how they work, while 40% report that AI-assisted content consistently performs better, according to Adobe’s 2026 Creators’ Toolkit Report. On a platform like TikTok Shop, where visibility often depends more on the volume of content than its quality, brands may have to allow some AI-assisted material to achieve their desired outcome.

Implications for retailers: Brands that use TikTok Shop’s open affiliate plan—which enables any creator to earn commissions for promoting their products—should expect to be the subject of AI-generated shoppable content as influencers look to maximize their earnings potential and minimize production time. While fewer than 1 in 3 US and UK creators (30%) are fully outsourcing content creation to AI, 46% are using AI to enhance their content, according to an April report from Epidemic Sound.