Crypto
Home›Crypto›Regulation›Google pulls AI image generator from Google Earth over…
Google pulls AI image generator from Google Earth over deepfake fears
The tool launched on July 30 and was removed by July 31 after users shared generated satellite-style images that appeared to violate company policies.
Google removed an AI image-generation feature from Google Earth on July 31, a day after it launched on July 30, citing concerns that users were sharing generated imagery that appears to violate its policies, according to Decrypt.
The feature, which used Google’s Nano Banana model, allowed users to select a location in the Google Earth web version and generate a scene from a text prompt using an image-generation button. Critics warned it could make convincing satellite-style deepfakes that could amplify misinformation, including scenarios such as a blast crater in Los Angeles, a flooded U.S. Capitol, and Iran’s Kharg Island on fire.
Google said it plans to restore the capability only after adding stronger guardrails, but it did not provide a timeline. The company also defended the approach by noting images carry a SynthID watermark, but that did not ease concerns from journalists and open-source researchers.
Decrypt also highlighted demonstrations where reporters generated fabricated events, and an open-source researcher told NPR that prompts including refugees near the Mexican border and a nuclear plant in Iran were not refused. Google said it was rolling back the feature while it works on additional controls.