Google Photos Adds Redact Tool as New Gemini Editing Feature Goes Behind a Paywall

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. — Google is rolling out a Google Photos update that adds a privacy-focused Redact tool for Android users worldwide, while reserving a new natural-language search and editing feature for eligible paid subscribers in the United States. The release also brings changes to Markup, clothing cataloging and creative tools, with availability varying by feature and location.

Redact sits inside the app’s built-in Markup suite. Users can select part of a photo and cover it instantly with a secure, pixelated block. Previously, Android users trying to hide license plate numbers, home addresses or information in financial documents had to rely on pen and highlighter tools that could leave text legible after changes to image contrast or brightness.

The redesigned Markup interface also adds precise thickness sliders for writing utensils and highlighters, along with more typography fonts. Google is distributing those upgraded tools to all Google Photos users on Android globally.

A separate feature called Gemini Spark lets users find specific files and carry out complex edits through natural-language prompts rather than standard manual menus. At launch, it is available only in the United States to Google One AI Premium subscribers with access to the Google AI Pro or Ultra models. That subscription tier currently costs $19.99 a month in the U.S., placing the advanced conversational AI capability behind a paywall while basic utility updates remain free.

Google is also moving Wardrobe from limited testing to a wider release on Android and iOS in the United States, India and Brazil. Using computer vision and machine learning, it scans a user’s photo library to identify, isolate and catalog clothing and jewelry. The resulting digital inventory can be browsed for outfit combinations and styling ideas.

For standard accounts, Android users are receiving Moods, a set of vintage-inspired color-grading filters intended to mimic analog film. On Android and iOS in selected countries, Google is also launching 15 Remix templates that use facial recognition to place a user’s likeness in generative digital backdrops, including simulated red carpet events and retro photo booth layouts.

The expansion comes as Google moves features once used to distinguish its Pixel smartphones toward broader, cloud-driven availability across platforms. Magic Eraser and Photo Unblur have increasingly been adapted for iOS and Android users, as Google shifts its monetization focus toward cloud storage and premium AI subscriptions. Over the past decade, Google Photos has grown to serve more than 1 billion users globally.