Google Photos will soon clearly label images with AI edits

Google Photos is undoubtedly one of the best photo management apps, thanks to new and enhanced features. That said, it can’t clearly tell if an image has AI edits. Earlier this month, some reports hinted that Google Photos would soon help identify AI-generated images. Now, the company announced that Google Photos will soon tell you if an image has been through AI edits.

Google Photos’ “AI Info” section will clearly label images with AI edits

Starting next week, Google Photos will clearly label images that went through edits using AI tools like Magic Editor, Magic Eraser, and Zoom Enhance. Google, in the announcement post, says that it is making this change to increase transparency and help users understand more about AI-edited images. With the growing popularity of Gen AI tools, this move was much needed.

While the metadata of an image file used to include the use of AI, it wasn’t easily accessible to users. However, that’ll change starting next week. Google Photos will include a new “AI Info” section alongside image details like file name, backup status, and location. This will allow users to easily know if AI has altered the images.

The new section will be available on Google Photos web and mobile app

It’s worth noting that Google Photos will label the edits involving generative AI. That’s not all, Google also says “We will also use IPTC metadata to indicate when an image is composed of elements from different photos using non-generative features.” Here, Google is referring to “Best Take” and “Add Me” features.

The “AI Info” section will be visible in the image details view of the Google Photos web and mobile app. While this is a welcome change, Google has yet to come up with something that will let users immediately identify AI-edited images.