Google simply declared itself a contender in AI design at IO 2026

Google introduced at its annual Google I/O event on Tuesday that it’s launching Pics, a brand new AI-powered design and image-generation app for Google Workspace. The tech big says it designed the app to be accessible to everybody, from academics to small enterprise house owners.

With Pics, customers can generate every part from social media graphics and invites to advertising and marketing supplies and mock-ups utilizing easy textual content prompts, with no need any enhancing expertise or superior instruments. By giving customers a straightforward method to generate visuals, Google is seeking to tackle fashionable design apps like Canva, in addition to merchandise from AI-native rivals like Claude Design from Anthropic. Google’s entry into the area indicators that AI-powered design is quick changing into a core aggressive area — with actual stakes for any enterprise that will depend on visible content material.

The brand new app is launching to a gaggle of testers at I/O and can be rolling out to Google AI Extremely subscribers this summer season, Google says.

The corporate acknowledges that though AI fashions right now can generate high-quality photographs, it’s nonetheless tough to change only one a part of a picture. For those who get a picture that’s nearly excellent however need to change a small element, it’s a must to write a wholly new immediate and hope the AI doesn’t alter an excessive amount of. That’s why Pics not solely generates photographs but additionally makes them simply editable.

Customers can enter a immediate, and Pics will generate what they want. Gemini powers the enhancing layer, making each factor in a generated design or picture totally adjustable. You possibly can write a brand new immediate to make adjustments, however you too can merely click on the half you need to change and depart a remark — very similar to leaving suggestions in Google Docs.

You too can edit immediately, with out leaving a remark or writing a immediate. For instance, if you happen to create a party invitation and need to change the time listed on the cardboard, you are able to do so manually.

Pics is powered by Nano Banana 2, which Google says is a powerful match for the app as a result of it helps exact textual content rendering, real-world data, and detailed visible output. Pics can also be constructed natively into Google Workspace, enabling visible collaboration throughout its apps.

When you’re joyful together with your design, you’ll be able to obtain, copy, print, or share it with others. You too can move it to another person for a last spherical of edits earlier than it goes out, Google says.