If you’ve seen headlines about Google training its AI on personal photos and started wondering what’s actually happening to your own library, you’re not alone. The truth is more nuanced than a single toggle — Google has several separate settings that control different ways your images, videos, and audio can end up feeding its AI systems.
Table of Contents
This guide walks through each control that actually matters: the one for your Google Photos library, the one for anything you upload directly to the Gemini app, and a newer one covering images and audio from Google Search, Lens, and Translate. Turn off the ones that apply to you and you’ll close the gaps that actually exist — though it’s worth knowing upfront that no setting fully removes Google’s ability to review content when it’s tied to safety or abuse concerns.
Quick Answer
There isn’t one master switch. To limit Google’s use of your visual and audio data for AI training, check three places: your Gemini Apps Activity settings (myactivity.google.com/product/gemini), the newer Search Services History “Save Media” control (myactivity.google.com/search-services/settings), and, inside the Google Photos app, the Gemini features and Face Grouping toggles under Photos settings. Google states that photos stored in your Google Photos library itself aren’t used to train AI models outside of Google Photos — the risk mainly comes from photos you actively share into Gemini, Search, or Lens. Note that turning off Gemini Apps Activity (also labeled Keep Activity) stops future chats and attachments from being used for training, but it does not stop all human review — Google says it can still review content to protect users and enforce safety policies, regardless of that setting.
Turn Off Gemini Apps Activity
Anything you upload directly into the Gemini app or gemini.google.com — including photos, screenshots, or videos you attach to a chat — can be saved to your account and reviewed by humans to improve Google’s models, unless you turn this off. Go to myactivity.google.com/product/gemini while signed in, and switch Keep Activity to off. This stops future conversations, including any files you attach, from being saved to your activity history or used to train Google’s AI models — but it does not stop all human review: Google says it can still review chats to keep its services safe and secure, and this happens independently of the Keep Activity setting.
This setting has real limits. Google says it processes Gemini Apps content to maintain the safety and reliability of its services, including detecting and responding to fraud, abuse, and security risks — and content reviewed or flagged this way can still be seen by humans and retained separately (Google says for up to three years) even with Keep Activity off. Google also holds conversations for a short window (up to roughly 72 hours) to operate the service before they’re eligible for deletion. In other words, turning the toggle off limits training use, not all human access.
Turning the setting off going forward doesn’t erase what was already saved — you’ll want to delete existing activity from the same page as well. It’s also worth deleting any photos or files you’ve previously sent to Gemini in past conversations, since those were saved under the old setting if Keep Activity was on at the time.
Check the Newer Search Services “Save Media” Setting
In 2026 Google rolled out a broader setting that governs images from Google Lens, audio from voice search, and recordings from Google Translate — separate from the Gemini toggle above, and enabled by default for many accounts. Go to myactivity.google.com/search-services/settings and turn off Save Media. This stops new images, audio, and video from your Search-related interactions from being stored and used to develop Google’s AI models.
This setting doesn’t automatically turn off Gemini Apps Activity, and vice versa — they’re independent, so check both if you want full coverage.
In your Google Photos app, tap your profile icon in the top right, then go to Photos settings, then Preferences, and look for Gemini features in Photos (sometimes labeled ‘Use Gemini in Photos’). Turning this off disables Gemini-powered features like Ask Photos and AI-generated memories that read your library.
While you’re there, go to the Privacy section of Photos settings and turn off Face Grouping. This stops Google from grouping photos by the faces it recognizes, which limits what facial data is available to AI-driven features.
According to Google’s stated privacy policy, content stored purely in your Google Photos library is not used to train generative AI models outside of Google Photos. The exposure mainly happens when you actively share a photo into Gemini, Search, or a connected app — at that point it’s treated under that product’s separate terms, not the Photos library’s.
Tips / Common Mistakes
Don’t assume turning off Keep Activity means nobody at Google will ever see a chat or photo you send to Gemini — safety and abuse review can still apply regardless of the setting, so avoid sending sensitive images or personal documents through the Gemini app.
Check all three settings, not just one. People commonly turn off Gemini Apps Activity and assume they’re covered, then forget that Search Services Save Media is a separate toggle that’s on by default.
If you submit feedback (like a thumbs-down) on a Gemini response, Google says it may collect recent chat history around that feedback to review it, even with Keep Activity off — skip feedback if you want to minimize what’s shared.
Revisit these settings periodically. Google has changed how these controls are named and organized more than once, so a setting you configured months ago may have moved or been split into a new one.
Explore more: More technology guides.
Google Photos and Gemini AI training opt-out FAQs
Does Google use everything in my Google Photos library to train Gemini?
Google states that photos and videos stored in your Google Photos library are not used to train AI models outside of Google Photos. The exposure comes from actively uploading or sharing a photo into the Gemini app, Search, or Lens, which falls under different terms.
If I turn off Gemini Apps Activity, does that stop all human review of my chats?
No. Turning off Keep Activity stops future conversations from being saved to your activity history and used to train Google’s models, but it does not stop all human review — Google says conversations can still be reviewed by humans to protect users and enforce safety policies, and content flagged for safety, fraud, or abuse concerns can be retained separately regardless of the setting.
Are the Gemini toggle and the Search Services “Save Media” toggle the same setting?
No. They’re independent controls — one covers the Gemini app, the other covers images and audio from Search, Lens, and Translate. Turning off one does not turn off the other, so check both.
Will turning off these settings break features I use, like Google Photos memories?
Turning off Gemini features in Photos will disable AI-powered features like Ask Photos and AI-generated memories, since those rely on the same processing. Basic backup, search, and organization in Google Photos will still work.
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Photo by Zulfugar Karimov on Unsplash.