Must Romanian Shops Disclose AI Chatbots?

In short, yes. If you run an AI chatbot on a shop selling into Romania, you should tell customers they are dealing with a machine rather than a person, unless that is already obvious from the context. The duty comes from the EU AI Act, Regulation (EU) 2024/1689, which applies directly in Romania as an EU rule.

Where the duty comes from

Article 50 of the AI Act sets out transparency obligations. One of them is that people interacting with an AI system should know they are doing so. For a shop, that means a chatbot or virtual assistant should make clear it is automated. Most shops are “deployers” of AI — they use it rather than build it — and this disclosure is a deployer-level, practical step, not a heavy technical burden.

What “disclose” looks like in practice

• A short line near the chat window saying customers are speaking to an automated assistant.
• Wording that is clear and easy to see, not buried in the small print.
• The disclosure available in Romanian for your Romanian customers.

The Romanian angle

The rule is the same in Romania as across the Union, because it comes from an EU Regulation. Romania adds the local layer: national authorities to supervise the Act — still being designated during 2025 and 2026 — and the expectation that consumer information reaches Romanian buyers in Romanian.

This answer is educational, not legal advice.