After complaints, Google will make it easier to disable gen AI search in Photos

Source: Ars Technica

Background

Google has spent the past few years in a constant state of AI escalation, rolling out new versions of its Gemini models and integrating that technology into every feature possible. The AI‑fueled evolution of Google products continues unabated—except for Google Photos. After waffling on how to handle changes to search in Photos, Google has relented and will add a simple toggle to bring back the classic search experience.

Issues with the Gemini‑powered “Ask Photos”

The rollout of the Gemini‑powered Ask Photos search experience has not been smooth. According to Google Photos head Shimrit Ben‑Yair, the company has heard the complaints — see the tweet. As a result, Google Photos will soon make it easy to revert to the traditional, non‑Gemini search system.

If you weren’t using Google Photos from the start, it can be hard to understand just how revolutionary the search experience was. Previously, users had to scroll through timelines to find photos; with AI, they could simply type what was in the images. This application of artificial intelligence predates the current obsession with generative systems, which is why Google introduced it a few years ago.

Google launched the beta Ask Photos experience in 2024, rolling it out slowly in the Photos app while gathering feedback. The feedback was largely negative. Ask Photos is intended to better respond to natural‑language queries, but it is much slower than traditional search, and its selection of pictures appears more error‑prone. The problems were severe enough that Google paused the full rollout of Ask Photos in summer 2025 to make vital improvements, though the feature remains far from satisfactory.

Upcoming Change

Google will add a toggle that lets users switch back to the classic, non‑Gemini search experience, addressing the widespread complaints and restoring the faster, more reliable search most users expect from Google Photos.