Google confirms AI-generated images in AI Overviews were a "small experiment" now stopped
gaganghotra_ · x · 2026-08-18
Google confirmed that automatically showing AI-generated images inside AI Overviews was only a "small experiment" that it is no longer running.
Google had announced last month it would bring image generation directly into AI Overviews. This week users — including recipe site Inspired Taste — spotted AI-generated step images in recipe results, sparking creator backlash: publishers argued it replaces their labor of buying groceries, testing, photographing and filming recipes.
Google clarified this is distinct from the Nano Banana feature announced in July, which only triggers when users explicitly ask for an image.
Related event: Google Confirms AI Overviews Image Experiment Quietly Shut Down(2 posts)→
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