Google Photos users were thrilled when the company announced conversational photo editing powered by its new Ask Photos feature. Yet, some users quickly noticed the feature never showed up on their devices. According to a report from the Houston Chronicle, this wasn’t a rollout glitch after all — Google has confirmed that Ask Photos is currently unavailable in Texas and Illinois.
While the company hasn’t revealed the reason behind the restriction, speculation centers on strict state laws governing biometric and data privacy. Both Texas and Illinois enforce tight regulations on how companies can collect, store, and process personal data — particularly under the Texas Data Privacy and Security Act (TDPSA) and Illinois’ Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA). Given Google’s past run-ins with Texas over data handling practices, the company may be opting for caution rather than compliance complications. Still, without an official explanation, users remain in the dark about the exact cause.
AI Still Flourishes Elsewhere in Google’s Ecosystem
Despite the regional absence of Ask Photos, Google’s push into AI-driven tools remains strong. Gemini, the company’s flagship AI assistant, continues to expand across apps, and Google’s Nano Banana image editor has found its way into several Google services — including Search — without any known state-level restrictions. Rumors even suggest it could appear in Google Messages soon.
For now, users in Texas and Illinois — including Pixel 10 owners — will need to rely on Google Photos’ traditional editing tools while waiting for the conversational AI experience to reach their states. Whether Google will eventually address the reasoning behind the delay remains to be seen, but the company’s AI momentum shows no sign of slowing.
