Google Resumes Rollout of AI-Based ‘Ask Photos’ Image Search
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Google Resumes Rollout of AI-Based ‘Ask Photos’ Image Search
Google has resumed the rollout of its AI-powered “Ask Photos” feature in Google Photos. The company is also making some updates to how it works. The idea is to let users search their library beyond relying on keywords, dates, or location details. Google says that the Ask Photos feature is now “opening up beyond early access” and will start to roll out to more “eligible users” in the U.S. in the coming days. The tool should now perform faster for simpler searches, the company says.
Google announced the “Ask Photos” feature last May at I/O 2024 and positioned it as AI-powered feature within Google Photos that would let users search their photo library using natural language questions, similar to how you would ask another person.
With Ask Photos, users can submit various queries such as “Show me the best photo from each national park I’ve visited,” or “What themes have we had for Lena’s birthday parties.” The idea is to let users search their library beyond relying on keywords, dates, or location details.
At the time, the company said that the feature uses a special version of Google’s most advanced Gemini AI, built just for Ask Photos.
As reported by The Verge, Google paused the rollout of its AI-powered “Ask Photos” earlier this month, with the Google Photos product manager saying on X (formerly Twitter) that the tool “isn’t where it needs to be in terms of latency, quality, and UX.”
However, in a blog post published on Thursday, Google announced that it is rolling out Ask Photos again, and that the tool should now perform faster for simpler searches.
“We love seeing how you’re using Ask Photos in early access, like asking ‘suggest photos that’d make great phone backgrounds’ or ‘what did I eat on my trip to Barcelona?’” the company writes in the blog post.
“Ask Photos uses Gemini models to answer complex queries like these, but we’ve also heard your feedback that it should return more photos faster for simple searches, like ‘beach’ or ‘dogs.’”
To do this Google says it is combining the speed of the old Google Photos search with the power of their new AI tool Ask Photos to create a smoother, faster experience.
“To address this, we’re bringing the best of Photos’ classic search feature into Ask Photos and improving latency, so you can get fast help with simple and complex queries in one place,” the company writes You’ll now see results right away while Gemini models continue to work in the background to find the most relevant photos or information for more complex queries.
Google says that the Ask Photos feature is now “opening up beyond early access” and will start to roll out to more “eligible users” in the U.S.
Google Halts ‘Ask Photos’ AI Feature to Address Performance Issues
Google has temporarily halted the rollout of its new AI-driven ‘Ask Photos’ feature in Google Photos. Launched as a slow expansion since late last year, the experimental tool was designed to help users search their photo libraries using natural language. The tool, based on a version of Google’s most advanced Gemini models customised specifically for Ask Photos, has been paused in limited rollout numbers.
However, the company is now taking a step back. Jamie Aspinall, a product manager for Google Photos, acknowledged the move in a post on X (formerly Twitter), stating: “Ask Photos isn’t where it needs to be.” He cited concerns over latency, quality, and overall user experience.
The tool, based on a version of Google’s most advanced Gemini models customised specifically for Ask Photos, has been paused in limited rollout numbers while the team works on improvements. Aspinall added that a better version addressing these shortcomings is expected to be released within two weeks: “that brings back the speed and recall of the original search.”
Meanwhile, Google continues enhancing the core functionality of Google Photos. The company recently announced improvements to keyword search, allowing users to find exact matches by using quotation marks around filenames, camera models, captions, or embedded text. Searching without quotes will also return visual matches, expanding the way users can locate content within their photo libraries.
First introduced at Google I/O 2024, Ask Photos was promoted as a helpful assistant for answering common-sense queries—like identifying birthday party themes or recalling national park visits—using both image content and embedded text. As the company previously explained, “Gemini’s multimodal capabilities can help understand exactly what’s happening in each photo and can even read text in the image if required.”
This isn’t the first time Google has paused an AI feature rollout, as it navigates the complex and fast-evolving space of generative AI alongside growing competition from other tech giants and startups.
Source: https://petapixel.com/2025/06/27/google-resumes-rollout-of-ai-based-ask-photos-image-search/