On Thursday, Google released a new AI feature that allowed anyone to create fake images in Google Earth. Naturally, people used the AI to put a fake nuclear plant in Iran and show a plane crashing into One World Trade Center in New York. After massive online backlash, the tech giant killed the feature on Friday.
“We know that people uniquely trust Google Earth for a reliable view of the world. We’ve seen geospatial professionals using this feature for a range of useful purposes, however we’ve also seen people sharing screenshots of generated imagery that appear to violate our policies,” the company said in a statement posted online.
“So we’re rolling back this feature in Google Earth while we work on implementing stronger guardrails,” the company continued. “It’s important to note that generated images didn’t appear in the main Google Earth experience for others to see and were watermarked as AI generated.”
The big question, of course, is why Google released this feature to begin with. People made AI slop to show things on Google Earth that didn’t happen, including the kinds of things that would quickly go viral if people thought they were real. Images of people in Mexico amassing on the U.S. border—which one person made—are the kind of thing that can be politically useful for supporters of President Donald Trump.
And there are already plenty of people who believe the terror attacks on September 11, 2001 were fake. What purpose does it serve humanity to let people make those images in a setting that gives it the Google stamp of approval? Yes, there is a watermark. But it’s easy to remove watermarks with other AI tools.
Tonight I typed just one sentence into Google Earth and put refugees near the Mexican border. Then I planted a nuclear plant in Iran. What on earth is Google doing? Check my latest post here: https://t.co/N0h6CVECqS pic.twitter.com/WSjdcEXWJx
— 𝚑𝚎𝚗𝚔 𝚟𝚊𝚗 𝚎𝚜𝚜 (@henkvaness) July 30, 2026
Google hasn’t addressed what they thought this new feature would accomplish for the average person and it’s hard to imagine the non-nefarious purposes.
The response to Google’s decision to pull the AI feature seemed positive overall, with many people expressing frustration that it was attempted in the first place.
Alex Hirsch, the animator who created the TV show Gravity Falls, captured a common sentiment about the AI slop on X, writing, “You guys are living in a complete bubble. Step outside Silicon Valley for two seconds and you’ll realize no actual human wants AI sludge crammed into every corner of every product. Touch grass. Talk to actual people.”
It’s true that there’s been a lot of public resentment toward the big tech companies for trying to push AI into everything. But there are powerful interests who want to make sure AI is everywhere. For some, it’s about keeping stock prices elevated. But for others in the ruling class it’s all about wages.
Automation has historically hurt blue collar workers the most, with machines replacing manual labor on assembly lines. But with AI chatbots, white collar workers are finally replaceable, at least in ways that make it harder for those workers to ask for more money.
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