Google pulls AI image tool from Google Earth after warnings

Google removed an AI image generator from Google Earth less than 24 hours after launching it, following expert warnings that the tool could create realistic fake satellite images and spread misinformation.

The feature, labeled “create an image”, let users zoom into a location and generate satellite-style imagery in seconds using Google Earth’s satellite, aerial and 3D mapping data. The control is no longer visible inside Google Earth while Google builds stronger safeguards.

Google presented the tool for uses such as visualizing historical landscapes, illustrating urban planning scenarios and creating real estate mockups.

Researchers and open-source investigators raised concerns that AI-generated satellite images could be mistaken for real evidence and circulate quickly on social platforms without context.

Digital investigations expert Henk van Ess wrote: “Google had spent 20 years building a reference the world relies on, then added a button that invents things.”

Brady Africk, a satellite imagery analyst at the American Enterprise Institute, warned convincing fake satellite images could erode public trust in authentic geospatial imagery. Reported tests indicated the feature could be steered to depict military or geopolitical sites.

Google confirmed it had seen people share screenshots of AI-generated images that “appear to violate our policies” and said it was pausing the feature while it builds stronger safeguards. Before the pause, the company said generated images included invisible digital markers detectable with Gemini and that it blocked generation on topics defined as dangerous under its AI use policies.

Critics noted that screenshots and static images can be copied and circulated without provenance data, making it harder for journalists and investigators to verify imagery.

In 2023, an AI-created image of an explosion near the Pentagon circulated online and briefly affected markets and public perception, an incident cited by observers as an example of how fabricated geospatial content can spread.

Google has not provided a timeline for relaunching the feature and said it may return with clearer digital markers and additional protections.