As AI-assisted development continues to accelerate in fan-driven dev communities, Nexus Mods has outlined an extensive new set of policies on mods created using AI. In short, the site will continue to accept AI mods, but it will soon require modders to disclose their usage of AI-generated content and will allow users to filter out that content entirely if they so choose.
"We are pro-human creativity," Nexus Mods co-owner Foledinho says in a bolded portion of the new announcement. However, the site "won't introduce an outright ban on AI-generated mods. You may ask me why, since that is not the solution some of you were looking for. The answer is simple: AI is currently used throughout the whole process of creation, from script autocompletion to generation of textures, voices, and full assets, and it is difficult to draw a clear boundary between what is acceptable and unacceptable."
Foledinho argues that "an outright ban will not eliminate AI from the modding process but will prevent people from mentioning its use. We'd prefer the opposite; it should be out in the open, clearly labelled, and regulated according to the rules that we can implement on our platform."
To that end, Nexus Mods is "making AI disclosure mandatory when uploading a new mod, meaning Mod Authors will need to declare whether AI has been used in their work." An example screenshot suggests that modders will be able to declare whether their mod is primarily AI-generated, simply assisted by AI, or if it features AI-generated promotional material. Modders will also be required to give a specific "public explanation of how and where AI was used."
It all sounds fairly similar to the AI disclosures currently in use on Steam – nobody tell Tim Sweeney – but there's a key difference in how Nexus Mods will handle all this: users will be able to filter AI-generated content out of their searches entirely. "Some of you would prefer not to see any AI-generated content, and that’s your decision to make," Foledinho says.
Existing mods will have "a 60-day grace period" to meet the new requirements, which will run from November 3 to January 2, 2027. Once the grace period is over, "we will start directly enforcing these rules. Authors will be notified and asked to fix missing disclosures or permission settings." If there's "continued failure" to follow the disclosure rules, moderators will step in, potentially restricting that user's account or removing them from Nexus Mods entirely.
"While we hope these changes will encourage everyone to disclose their AI usage, to be honest, that’s not going to happen," Foledinho admits, but the site devs hope that having "clear moderation standards in place" will encourage modders to be up front about how they're using AI.
