What you need to know
- A report claims that Google has started pulling back on what’s available in the Pixel Studio app as Nano Banana surges ahead.
- It was stated that a recent Pixel Studio update has removed its Gen AI features, and Google reportedly confirmed that it will “redirect” users to Nano Banana in the Gemini app.
- Nano Banana 2 was recently revealed, and Google says it will become the default image generator for users across its ecosystem.
Google is reportedly making changes to its Pixel Studio app, as the company seeks to move people to other areas of its ecosystem.
The company rolled out a recent update late this week, and 9to5Google reports it includes changes that signal a slowdown for the Pixel Studio app. The publication states that opening Pixel Studio on a Pixel phone no longer gives the option to select generative AI-based tools for images. Specifically, it states that users have lost the ability to edit images based on prompts, create stickers, and remove specific parts of an image.
The post credits a brief talk with Google about this, in which the company confirms the changes. More than that, Google told the publication that it will “redirect” users from the Pixel Studio app to Nano Banana if they’re looking to use Gen AI features and tools. Additionally, Google says it will offer “an easy export tool for all your creations.”
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While this could be seen as a major chunk of the Pixel Studio app’s purpose lost, Google adds that everything else will still function. The publication builds on this, highlighting that the other tools users would typically find (cropping, highlighting, etc.) are all present. This seemingly indicates a day when the Pixel Studio app is gone for good, as Google told 9to5 that things will continue to change.
We saw the signs
(Image credit: Andrew Myrick / Android Central)
This report by 9to5 comes at an interesting time, as Google recently announced that Nano Banana 2 has become its “default image generation model.” This second iteration of the model brings Pro-grade visuals at Flash-level (3.1 Flash) speeds. The company confirmed that Nano Banana 2 supports 512px to 4K image outputs across multiple aspect ratios.
Another big win is that Nano Banana 2 is available for every Gemini user, not just subscribers. Real-time knowledge from the web and improved text rendering facilitate better generation accuracy and legible text for users making cards and posters. It’s not as if Google had forgotten about Pixel Studio. A report about the app claimed the company was working on adding animated images as a feature for users. The user would enter a prompt about how they’d like the image to be animated, and watch the software do its work.
However, with everything Google is doing with Nano Banana and Gemini, it seems it doesn’t want to have anything Gen AI-related split between apps.
Android Central’s Take
I think all I really have to look at is Google’s Nano Banana announcement about reaching 10 million new users in the Gemini app. The additions the company made with its image generation capabilities are nothing shy of intriguing. It’s evident in the number of people who used it in the Gemini app just to see what it was about. Google is likely trying to further that success by pushing Pixel Studio enjoyers into the Gemini app for their Gen AI products. Whether that works or not remains to be seen, but it’s already in motion.
