Google has just announced itself as an AI design contender at IO 2026

Google announced at its annual Google I/O event on Tuesday that it will launch Pics, a new AI-powered design and photo creation app for Google Workspace. The tech giant says it designed the app to be accessible to everyone, from teachers to small business owners.

Using images, users can create everything from social media graphics and invitations to marketing materials and forms using simple text prompts, without requiring any advanced editing skills or tools. By giving users an easy way to create visuals, Google is looking to take on popular design apps like Canva, as well as products from native AI-driven competitors like Anthropic’s Claude Design. Google’s entry into the space suggests that AI-powered design is quickly becoming a key competitive arena — with real risks for any business that relies on visual content.

Google says the new app will be released to a group of testers at I/O and will be rolled out to Google AI Ultra subscribers this summer.

The company admits that although today’s AI models can produce high-quality images, it is still difficult to edit just one part of an image. If you get an image that’s almost perfect but want to change a small detail, you have to write a completely new prompt and hope the AI ​​doesn’t change it too much. That’s why Pics not only creates photos but also makes them easily editable.

Users can enter a prompt, and the images will generate what they need. Gemini powers the editing layer, making every element in the design or created image fully editable. You can type a new prompt to make changes, but you can also simply click on the part you want to change and leave a comment — just like leaving comments in Google Docs.

You can also edit directly, without leaving a comment or writing a prompt. For example, if you create an invitation to a birthday party and want to change the time listed on the card, you can do so manually.

The Pics app is powered by the Nano Banana 2, which Google says is a perfect fit for the app as it supports accurate text display, real-world knowledge, and detailed visual output. Images is also natively integrated into Google Workspace, enabling visual collaboration across its applications.

Once you’re satisfied with your design, you can download, copy, print, or share it with others. Google says you can also pass it on to someone else for a final round of edits before publishing it.

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