Google has announced that Workspace users will now be able to generate images of people using its advanced Gemini AI, marking a significant update to its suite of productivity tools. This new capability is part of the company’s broader initiative to enhance its Google Workspace offerings with artificial intelligence (AI) features. The rollout comes after a brief period in February 2024, when Google temporarily removed Gemini’s ability to create images involving people due to concerns over the generation of inaccurate and biased visuals that raised the risk of deepfakes.
As part of its latest update, Google has integrated AI features into the core Google Workspace subscription, eliminating the previous Gemini add-on. This shift allows all paid subscribers access to the first batch of new Gemini-powered features. Among these updates, the most noteworthy is the ability to generate images featuring people, thanks to the advanced capabilities of the Imagen 3 AI model. This marks a return for the feature, which was initially suspended but is now reintroduced with additional safeguards.
Google had rolled back this feature in early 2024 after AI-generated images were found to potentially propagate harmful biases. In response, the company has re-launched the functionality in an early access phase starting in August 2024, after implementing a series of safeguards designed to reduce the risk of misuse. These measures aim to ensure that the generated images are more accurate and ethically produced, providing users with a more secure experience when creating custom images of people.
To further protect against potential misuse, Google has also integrated SynthID, a watermarking tool that tags AI-generated images for identification. This feature is intended to ensure that images created by Gemini can be clearly distinguished from authentic photographs, adding an extra layer of accountability. With these enhancements, Google is positioning itself as a leader in responsible AI deployment within its productivity ecosystem, giving users powerful new tools while maintaining safeguards to prevent harm.
