Google unveiled Pics, a new AI-driven design and image generation app for Google Workspace, at its annual I/O event on Tuesday. The app is intended to be user-friendly for a wide range of people, including teachers and small business owners.
Pics allows users to create social media graphics, invitations, marketing materials, and mockups by using simple text prompts without needing editing skills or advanced tools. This positions Google to compete with popular design apps like Canva and AI-native tools like Anthropic’s Claude Design. The move highlights the growing importance of AI-powered design in visual content industries.
Initially, Pics will be available to a select group of testers at the I/O event and will expand to Google AI Ultra subscribers this summer. Google recognizes the current challenge in AI processes, where modifying specific details in generated images is difficult. As a solution, Pics not only creates images but also makes them easy to edit.
Powered by Gemini, Pics allows for complete adjustability of generated designs, enabling element changes through new prompts or direct selections, similar to feedback in Google Docs. Users can also make manual edits, like adjusting details on a birthday invitation, without using prompts.
The app is built on Nano Banana 2, noted for its text precision, real-world context, and detailed visuals, and is integrated within Google Workspace for cohesive visual collaboration. Once finalized, designs can be downloaded, shared, or printed, with the option for further edits.