Google has quietly suspended the rollout of “Ask Photos,” its anticipated AI-driven search feature within Google Photos, citing issues with performance and overall user experience. This decision delays a tool poised to transform how users search their photo libraries using natural language and marks another instance of Google recalibrating an ambitious AI product after its initial launch.
The pause highlights the persistent challenges in deploying sophisticated AI technologies at scale, impacting both user access to innovative features and Google’s AI roadmap.
The halt was confirmed on June 3 by Jamie Aspinall, a Google Photos product manager, who stated in a post on X that “Ask Photos isn’t where it needs to be.” Aspinall elaborated that the feature’s expansion was paused “at very small numbers while we address these issues.” Googl is working on an improved version, expected in about two weeks, which aims to bring back “that brings back the speed and recall of the original search.”
“Ask Photos,” powered by what Google has described in a company blog post as its “most capable” Gemini AI models that are “only used for Ask Photos,” was a significant announcement at the Google I/O 2024 conference. The feature had been slowly expanding to users since the fall of 2024.
While “Ask Photos” is on hold, Google announced through its support channels enhancements to the conventional keyword search in Photos, which allow users to use quotation marks for exact text matches within photo metadata like filenames, camera models, captions, or text in images, and to search without quotes to include visual matches as well.
The “Ask Photos” feature, which began its initial rollout to select U.S. users in October 2024 following a waitlist and an early access period starting in September 2024, promised a more intuitive way to find images. AUsers could pose conversational queries, such as asking to see Halloween costumes from previous years or inquiring when a child first learned to swim.
However, even during its early testing phase, some reports indicated that while the tool adeptly handled searches for specific people or places, its performance could be inconsistent with queries about broader activities or events.
Familiar Territory: Google’s AI Recalibrations
This is not the first instance of Google adjusting an AI feature post-deployment. In May 2024, the company significantly curtailed its “AI Overviews” in Google Search after the feature generated widely shared nonsensical and inaccurate responses.
Similarly, in February 2024, Google paused its Gemini image generation tool due to the creation of historically inaccurate depictions. These episodes highlight the intricate balance between rapid innovation and ensuring the reliability of AI-powered user experiences.
Gemini’s Expanding Footprint Amidst Ongoing Scrutiny
The “Ask Photos” interruption occurs as Google continues its broad integration of Gemini AI across its product ecosystem, a strategy heavily emphasized at its I/O 2025 conference. This expansive effort includes launching a standalone Gemini AI application for iPhone, and introducing AI-driven “nudges” in Google Drive to proactively suggest files and offer summaries. Furthermore, Google is in the process of replacing Google Assistant with Gemini AI on Android devices.
Alongside user-facing features, Google is also equipping developers with tools like Google Jules for AI-assisted coding and Google Stitch for UI design, accessible via the Google Stitch official website.
The strategic importance of Gemini is further underscored by significant investments, such as deals with Samsung for preinstallation of the AI. Concurrently, Google is developing technologies like the SynthID Detector to address AI-generated content authenticity.
Google’s aggressive AI push has also faced scrutiny regarding data privacy. Despite Google’s assurances that user content in Google Workspace is not used for advertising or AI training without explicit permission, reports like have raised concerns about Gemini AI potentially scanning Google Drive files.
