Google Photos is introducing a suite of new functionalities today that harness the power of AI to enhance the organization and categorization of your photos. The incorporation of a feature called Photo Stacks will employ AI to identify the optimal photo within a group of pictures taken simultaneously, designating it as the primary image in the stack to declutter your Photos gallery. Another AI-driven attribute will recognize photos of items such as screenshots and documents, categorize them, and even enable you to set reminders for future retrieval—such as a screenshot of an event ticket containing a QR code necessary for entry.
Users will have the flexibility to manually select their preferred photo as the primary one or disable the feature altogether. However, with the feature activated, Google Photos will autonomously streamline your gallery, concealing multiple photos of the same moment beneath the top pick of the stack for a neater appearance. This functionality relies on signals assessing visual similarities to group akin photos captured in close succession, according to Google.
The company highlights that approximately one-third of most users’ galleries consist of comparable photos, resulting in a substantial reduction in visual clutter. Notably, the stacked photos remain present but are hidden from immediate view. To access them, users can tap on the stack and horizontally scroll through the additional images.
A particularly intriguing feature utilizes AI to organize specific photo types, such as documents, screenshots, receipts, and more. Google Photos leverages signals like Optical Character Recognition (OCR) to empower models that identify and categorize screenshots and documents into albums. Additionally, users can set reminders associated with these images; for instance, a screenshot of a concert ticket can prompt a reminder to revisit it closer to the event date and time.
Users also have the option to automatically archive screenshots and documents after 30 days, keeping them out of the primary gallery while remaining accessible in dedicated albums for reference. Both features are set to roll out to Google Photos on Android and iOS starting today.
