Google Disables Nano Banana 2 Image Generation in Google Earth After One Day

Google has removed its AI image-generation feature from Google Earth just one day after making it available to web users worldwide. The company said it is withdrawing the Nano Banana 2-powered capability while it develops stronger safeguards following examples of generated imagery that appeared to violate its policies.

“We're rolling back this feature in Google Earth while we work on implementing stronger guardrails,” Google said.

The feature launched as a new "create image" button in Google Earth on the web. Users could zoom to any location, enter a text prompt, and generate photorealistic images based on Google's satellite, aerial, and 3D imagery of that location. Google promoted the tool for uses including educational visualizations, real estate concepts, historical reconstructions, and creative reinterpretations of real places.

According to Google, the decision to reverse course was driven by how the feature was being used after launch rather than by the underlying AI model itself.

“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,” the company said.

Google noted that AI-generated images never appeared in the main Google Earth experience for other users and were marked as AI-generated. However, screenshots of those images quickly spread outside the platform.

Soon after launch, researchers and journalists demonstrated how the tool could generate fabricated scenes tied to real-world locations. Examples shared publicly included images depicting refugees near the U.S.-Mexico border, a nuclear facility in Iran, a fatal traffic collision in Amsterdam, and a bomb crater beside a hospital in Gaza. Additional testing produced synthetic images showing Iran's Kharg Island on fire and a flooded U.S. Capitol complex.

The rollback affects only the Google Earth integration. Google has not indicated that Nano Banana 2 itself is being withdrawn from other products or services.

The episode highlights the unique role Google Earth occupies as a widely used source of reference imagery. Journalists, human rights organizations, researchers, and open-source investigators frequently rely on the platform to verify the locations of photographs, videos, and events. Embedding AI-generated imagery directly into that environment prompted concerns that synthetic content could be more easily associated with trusted geographic references.

Jake Godin, a senior researcher at Bellingcat, described the change as primarily reducing the effort required to create fabricated satellite-style imagery. “It’s just streamlining the process, which I think is going to make it proliferate more,” he told NPR.

Google said the feature will return only after stronger guardrails have been implemented. The company has previously described using SynthID to identify AI-generated content and refusing prompts involving harmful subjects. While SynthID allows AI-generated images to be detected with Google's tools, it functions as a provenance marker rather than preventing content from being created.

For now, Google Earth on the web has reverted to displaying captured imagery without the AI image-generation tool. The company has not provided a timeline for when, or if, the feature will return beyond saying it will do so once stronger safeguards are in place.

This analysis is based on reporting from Unite.AI.

Image courtesy of Google.

This article was generated with AI assistance and reviewed for accuracy and quality.