Shirtless in AI: Exploring Google’s Image Generating Technology

I decided to give Google’s new Nano Banana Pro a try, and to my surprise, it ended up stripping my clothes off without my consent. It seems that the AI model thought my greetings card would look better with a more revealing touch.

Nano Banana Pro is designed for professionals, powered by Gemini 3. It serves as an upgrade to Google’s popular image generation and editing tool that gained popularity during a social media trend turning selfies into hyperrealistic 3D figurines. According to Google, this tool allows users to create high-quality images for printing, add legible text to pictures, and blend multiple images into a single composition. Naina Raisinghani, a product manager at Google DeepMind, mentioned that Nano Banana Pro is aimed at individuals who want to elevate their professional image.

Using Nano Banana Pro is straightforward: users can access the Gemini app, select “create images,” and activate the ‘thinking’ mode. Simply input your prompt and image, if applicable, and let the tool work its magic. Although the tool is free to use, there are limitations for non-subscribers, with expanded features for Google AI Plus, Pro, and Ultra subscribers.

Google boasts about Nano Banana Pro’s ability to produce “studio-quality designs,” flawless text rendering, and a range of creative editing options. To put these claims to the test, I uploaded a photo of myself near The Verge’s office in New York with the Brooklyn Bridge in the background. I asked Gemini to change the lighting from day to night, and the result was surprisingly realistic, even capturing details like the direction of moving cars. Adjusting the camera angle was equally simple, showcasing the tool’s versatility.

Additionally, Nano Banana Pro can be used to create infographics and diagrams for visualizing real-time information such as weather forecasts or sports updates. When I inquired about the weather forecast for the next four days in Washington, DC, and New York City, the resulting infographic was visually appealing and informative, with accurate text and numbers.

However, the tool faced challenges with more complex tasks. When asked to summarize a recent Verge story about Europe scaling back its AI and privacy laws in a comic book style, the outcome was somewhat lacking in summarization. While the images and text were rendered flawlessly, the comic failed to capture the essence of the original story accurately.

To test Nano Banana Pro’s design capabilities, I attempted to create greetings cards for the upcoming Christmas season. Despite some impressive results, such as creating multiple versions of myself in different outfits and settings, there were some unexpected outcomes, like my clones appearing topless in a beach setting. The tool also struggled with accurate text placement and rendering animals in a realistic manner.

Overall, Nano Banana Pro showcases significant improvements over its predecessor, offering users more precise editing options and intelligible text generation. While it may not turn amateurs into professional designers overnight, it certainly has the potential to enhance creative projects with its advanced features.