Google Earth removes artificial intelligence image generation feature

Google briefly unveiled a feature for Google Earth's satellite maps, allowing users to generate realistic-looking fake images on top of real ones, before removing it after widespread condemnation of its ability to easily spread misinformation.

In its original announcement on Thursday, Google stated that the feature could "bring history to life," or "give your favorite place a makeover," and recommended that users use it to create real estate plans or custom infographics.

One day later, Google rolled back the feature, stating that it was working on creating stronger guardrails for the image generation.

"We know that people uniquely trust Google Earth for a reliable view of the world," the statement read. "We’ve seen geospatial professionals using this feature for a range of useful purposes, however we’ve also seen people sharing screenshots of generated imagery that appear to violate our policies."

Google also noted that the AI-generated imgages had been watermarked as such, although Hank van Ess, an expert in online research methods, wrote in a blog post about the feature that the watermark only worked using Google products - for example, using Gemini to analyze the AI-generated photo.

Emmanuelle Saliba, chief investigative officer of AI detection company GetReal, told The Washington Post that the watermark and other similar safeguards were insufficient to safeguard against misinformation.

"They don’t change how people consume information,” she told the Washington Post. “Images are often viewed and shared in seconds, while verifying authenticity typically requires additional effort and context, placing the burden on the consumer.”

Van Ess also pointed out a danger presented by the tool from the opposite direction: not consumers being fooled by misinformation, but authorities having an alibi by which to claim true images as falsehoods.

"An official can now look at a genuine photograph of a genuine atrocity and say: AI," he wrote on his blog on Thursday. "He doesn’t need the tool for that. He needs everyone to know the tool exists."