Google’s image generation model Nano Banana is now a few clicks away in Google Earth, so you can use satellite views as your canvas and imagine a community, city, and world how you want it. It’s like SimCity but more real.

That sounds fun, until people with ill intentions come along. Henk van Ess describes the dangers and demonstrates how easy it is to fake images, such as this fake view of a nuclear power plant in Iran:

Oh.

Google claims they’ve established safeguards to prevent harmful images and misinformation, but that doesn’t seem to be holding up.

For 404 Media, Joseph Cox was able to generate other questionable views:

In 404 Media’s tests, we were able to add skyscrapers to a rural area, added a “homeless encampment” to a part of Los Angeles where homelessness has become a major political issue, added a “bomb blast and crater” to an area of Los Angeles, and digitally created protesters outside Google’s own corporate buildings.

Maybe Google and companies in general should make a pros and cons list before they release these tools.

Tags: ethics, generative, Google, Nano Banana, satellite imagery