Google now uses your search uploads to train AI

Google quietly enabled a "Save Media" setting that uses photos, voice recordings, and video from Search services to train AI models by default.techcrunch+1
The June policy update split privacy controls so users who previously opted out of Web & App Activity may not realize Search media is now collected separately.cryptorank+1
Users can opt out by unchecking "Save Media" on the Search Services History page and manually deleting previously saved files.techcrunch+1

Google Alphabet Inc. has begun using images, audio recordings, and video uploaded through its Search services to train AI models, with all users opted in by default — a change that drew widespread attention after TechCrunch flagged it on July 6 as an "under-the-radar update."techcrunch

What Changed

The policy shift, announced in June via an email to users, introduced a new "Search Services History" setting that separates search-related data management from Google's existing "Web & App Activity" controls. Within the new setting, a "Save Media" checkbox — enabled by default — allows Google to retain media uploaded across its Search-related products, including Google Lens, Search Live, Google Translate, Maps, Shopping, Flights, Hotels, and News.cryptorank+2

Google's own language in the email confirmed the scope: "Like your Search Services History, your saved media is also used to develop and improve Google services and technologies, including AI models and safety measures." The company's help documentation adds that saved media used for AI training is "disconnected from your Google Account and retained for up to 4 years."techcrunch+1

Google Photos is explicitly excluded from the policy — the change applies only to media actively pushed into Search tools, not to images stored in a user's photo library.gagadget+1

How to Opt Out

Users who want to stop their uploads from being used can visit the Search Services History page in their Google account and uncheck the "Save Media" box. Auto-deletion schedules of three, 18, or 36 months can also be set for future data. Turning off Save Media does not delete previously saved files; users must manually review and remove those through the "View and delete saved history" option.pcmag+3

For those who had already disabled Web & App Activity before the update, Google says the new Search Services History setting remains off automatically.theverge+1

A Familiar Playbook

The update follows a pattern of Google expanding data collection under default-on settings while technically offering opt-out controls. As Computerworld noted, the change was framed as giving users "more control" over their data, even as it broadened what Google retains. Privacy advocates have raised concerns that most users will never encounter the new setting, let alone adjust it, leaving their uploaded media in the AI training pipeline by default.engadget+2

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