AI Images Get The Green Light For SEO From Google

In a significant clarification for content creators and SEO professionals, Google has confirmed that using AI-generated images on a website will not lead to a ranking penalty. The announcement provides a clear answer to a question that has been a source of much debate and uncertainty within the digital marketing community.

Google's Official Stance on AI Images and SEO

During a Q&A session published on YouTube, Google's Gary Illyes directly addressed the issue. His statement comes as a relief to many, especially following Google's previous updates that cracked down on low-quality AI-generated text content, which left many wondering about the company's position on AI visuals.

The specific question posed to Illyes was straightforward and highly relevant to modern content strategies:

“Say if there’s a content that the content itself is legit, the sentences are legit but and also there are a lot of images which are relevant to the content itself, but all of them, let’s say all of them are generated by AI. Will that content or the overall site, is it going to be penalized or not?”

No Direct Negative SEO Impact

Illyes's response was unambiguous, confirming that there is no direct penalization for using AI-generated images.

“No, no. So AI generated image doesn’t impact the SEO. Not direct. So obviously when you put images on your site, you will have to sacrifice some resources to those images… But otherwise you are not going to, I don’t think that you’re going to see any negative impact from that. If anything, you might get some traffic out of image search or video search or whatever, but otherwise it should just be fine.”

He did, however, point out a technical consideration: images, regardless of their origin, consume server resources and can affect page load speed. More importantly, he suggested a potential benefit, noting that these images could even drive additional traffic from Google Image Search.

The Unspoken Rule: User Authenticity and Trust

While Google's algorithms may not penalize AI-generated visuals, it's crucial for publishers to consider their audience. The principle of authenticity remains paramount. Users have certain expectations depending on the context. For instance, a customer viewing a product page expects an accurate depiction of the item they are buying, and someone looking at a recipe wants to see what the final dish should genuinely look like.

Using AI images in situations where authenticity is expected could erode user trust, even if it doesn't trigger a direct SEO penalty. As Google often advises, content should be created for users first. Therefore, the decision to use AI images should always be weighed against how it will be perceived by your target audience and whether it enhances or detracts from their experience.

For those interested in hearing the full exchange, you can watch the Q&A session on YouTube.