Google suspends image generation in Google Earth after one day of realistic fakes
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Google suspended its image generation feature in Google Earth on July 31, just one day after its global launch, after users created convincing fake images of refugee camps, nuclear sites, and war zones. The company said it disabled the tool pending stricter content restrictions. The suspension came even as Google noted that some geospatial professionals had used the feature for legitimate purposes, including visualizing architectural projects and historical cityscapes.
The Feature
Google launched the Create image function in the web version of Google Earth on July 30, making it available globally. Users could select any location and describe changes via text; the Nano Banana 2 model would generate a photorealistic image by blending actual satellite, aerial, and 3D data from Google. The company pitched the tool for visualizing historical cityscapes, architectural projects, or urban planning.
Digital Manipulation
Digital investigator Henk van Ess demonstrated that the tool could generate depictions of a refugee camp at the U.S.-Mexico border, an Iranian nuclear facility, a fatal crash in Amsterdam, and an explosion crater in Gaza, with no content filter blocking his requests. The volunteer verification project GeoConfirmed reported that users were inserting military positions and manipulating information, undermining satellite imagery's role as a disinformation benchmark. Van Ess said Google spent two decades building a trusted reference map and then added a button that invents imagery.
What's Next
Google has not provided a timeline for the feature's return, pledging to develop stricter content restrictions. It remains unclear how the company will reconcile user demand for creative tools with the escalating risk of AI-generated geospatial misinformation.
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Google suspends image generation in Google Earth after one day of realistic fakes
