Keep an eye on your Google Photos app: a big AI upgrade is on the way

• Google Photos could be in line for another AI upgrade
• The Photo-to-Video feature may get a full prompt box
• It shows Google’s continued commitment to AI features

One of the neat tricks that AI bots are capable of is turning still images into short video clips, and it’s something you can already do in Google Photos, to a limited extent. Now it appears the feature will be getting a substantial upgrade.

As spotted by the team at Android Authority, there’s hidden code in the latest Google Photos app that suggests there will soon be a full AI text prompt box available for this image-to-video feature – so you can describe exactly what you want to happen.

That gives you a lot more flexibility than the current options, which started rolling out in July to some users: ‘subtle movement’ and ‘I’m feeling lucky’. Those options mostly let the AI decide how the photo should be animated.

The feature continues to be powered by Google’s older Veo 2 model. It’s not up to the standards of the latest Veo 3 model, but it’s still capable of some impressive and fun results – and all you need is a starting image.

The continuing spread of AI

It’s another example of the way Google is pushing its AI tools into all of its different apps and services – giving Gemini, Veo and the other models a wider reach than competitors such as ChatGPT can manage at the moment.

That extends to gadgets as well: Google recently introduced a range of new smart home products, including updated Nest cameras and a Google smart speaker arriving next year, and they all come with Gemini on board.

Still, OpenAI continues to expand its offerings with more apps, such as the recently launched Sora 2 video app and attached social network of sorts. Rumors continue that there are ChatGPT-powered hardware devices on the way too.

There’s no guarantee that the hidden feature spotted in Google Photos will eventually appear and roll out to everyone, but it seems a likely next step – so keep an eye on the app for any updated options that show up.

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Dave is a freelance tech journalist who has been writing about gadgets, apps and the web for more than two decades. Based out of Stockport, England, on TechRadar you’ll find him covering news, features and reviews, particularly for phones, tablets and wearables. Working to ensure our breaking news coverage is the best in the business over weekends, David also has bylines at Gizmodo, T3, PopSci and a few other places besides, as well as being many years editing the likes of PC Explorer and The Hardware Handbook.